There is an expression 'it gets worse before it gets better' and it's something Jurgen Klopp has already experienced ahead of his first game in charge of Liverpool tomorrow.
That clash away to Tottenham has already seen him have to make do without centre-forward Christian Benteke and a player expected to shine under his tutelage, Roberto Firmino, both of him are not fit enough to feature as they recover from injuries picked up before the international break.
Even worse, given that the aforementioned duo will return soon enough, is the double injury blows suffered by forward Danny Ings and teenage defender Joe Gomez which rules both players out of Klopp's plans for the rest of his first season in charge.
It leaves Klopp with fewer choices to make when it comes to choosing his starting XI for the Spurs match, so if he goes for his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation, the full-back pairing is likely to be Nathaniel Clyne on the right and Alberto Moreno on the left, given that he is the main option in Gomez's absence.
Centre-back will be interesting given the range of options (Martin Skrtel, Mamadou Sakho, Dejan Lovren and Kolo Toure) and the lack of defensive assurance provided by most of them.
For his first game in charge, Klopp could end up going for the Skrtel-Sakho partnership which started the Merseyside derby, with the struggling Lovren back in training after his ankle injury.
Leapfrogging the midfield temporarily, Klopp did hint that he will play one up front when he was asked about how he will cope without Benteke (temporarily) and Ings (long-term): "In this moment - for the next game - we have Daniel for the position and we have Origi. Two strikers, I don't need more."
Divock Origi (Peter Byrne / PA Wire/Press Association Images)
It's interesting that he said "for the position" - implying one space - although that does not preclude Origi from starting in a wider role tomorrow. But it does appear that Sturridge is the number one option for the Spurs match at centre-foward.
With Tottenham missing converted defensive midfielder Eric Dier through suspension, attacking midfielder Son Heung-Min and engine room operators Ryan Mason and Nabil Bentaleb through injury, Klopp could seize the opportunity to exploit midfield.
The versatile stand-in captain James Milner (due to Jordan Henderson's injury), is a likely starter, although whether he starts in the middle or out-wide is unclear, while the other options centrally are Brendan Rodgers favourite Joe Allen (in the sense that he is a clear Rodgers purchase) and Lucas Leiva. But Emre Can may get the nod to start alongside Milner as he offers more on the ball and adds greater flexibility going forward if Liverpool are to transition from back to front in the way that Klopp favours.
It would be odd if Philippe Coutinho did not start among the trio behind the striker, while it will be interesting to see if Klopp takes to Adam Lallana. Jordan Ibe's pace and hard-working nature makes him a potentially strong shout to start out wide in the opening match against Spurs.
So with injuries and suspensions accounted for, can we be looking at a line-up like this for tomorrow's game at Spurs to ease Klopp into life in a new hotseat?
Possible XI: Mignolet, Clyne, Skrtel, Sakho, Moreno, Milner, Can, Ibe, Coutinho, Lallana, Sturridge.
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