Liverpool vs Tottenham Hotspur: Divock Origi declared fit, Christian Benteke ruled out of clash

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has delivered a team news update ahead of the Premier League visit of Tottenham Hotspur on 2 April, with Divock Origi declared as fit to play. The hosts can deal Mauricio Pochettino's title contenders a considerable blow ahead of leaders Leicester City's meeting with Southampton on Sunday, and victory would also help to keep their own slight hopes of a top-four finish alive.

The recent break has been something of a double-edged sword for Klopp in terms of fitness, with no domestic fixtures for a fortnight allowing his current injured crop to further progress their recoveries during a warm-weather training camp in Tenerife. Alberto Moreno is expected to be available for the weekend after missing two matches with a hamstring issue, while longer-term absentees Lucas Leiva, Danny Ings and Joe Gomez were all said to have benefited from that trip to the Canary Islands.

He was not quite so fortunate with certain players called up for international duty, however. Although many returned from friendlies and 2018 World Cup qualifiers unscathed, attacking duo Divock Origi and Christian Benteke were forced to pull out of Belgium's squad for a rearranged fixture in Portugal due to thigh and knee problems respectively.

"We had smaller or bigger problems with the Belgian national players," Klopp was quoted as saying by Liverpool's official website at his latest press conference. "Divock Origi couldn't play the game for Belgium because of a little muscle issue. He has been back in complete training since yesterday, so he is available.

"It's completely different with Christian Benteke. At this moment, he is not available and we have to wait for further assessments to know exactly how long it will be. But for this game, he has no chance."

Another ongoing concern for Klopp relates to the availability of Roberto Firmino. The 24-year-old missed the defeat at Southampton in addition to Brazil's 2-2 draws against Uruguay and Paraguay with a hamstring complaint, and it remains uncertain if he will be fit to start against Tottenham at Anfield.

"Roberto Firmino will be close," the manager added. "We have to make a decision, maybe tomorrow – we will see. It's another 24 hours but we cannot bring pressure in this situation and we have to wait to see how he feels and other things. Most of the players came back [from internationals] healthy, that's cool."