Liverpool youngster Sepp van den Berg has suffered a serious ankle injury on loan at Schalke, reliable journalist James Pearce has confirmed.

The Lowdown: Van den Berg suffers injury

The 20-year-old joined the Bundesliga side during the summer transfer window, as he looked to earn regular minutes away from Anfield.

Van den Berg has impressed to date in Germany, making four league starts and averaging 4.8 clearances, 1.8 aerial wins and 2 interceptions per game while completing roughly 84 per cent of his passes.

The young defender was hurt in Sunday's 3-2 defeat at home to Augsburg though, with a bad ankle injury now confirmed.

The Latest: Pearce confirms long-term absence

Taking to Twitter, The Athletic's Pearce confirmed that Van den Berg would be out of action until next year, such is the severity of the problem, calling it a 'cruel setback'.

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The Verdict: Massive blow for youngster

This is a huge setback for a talented young footballer after his impressive campaign at Preston and Jurgen Klopp will no doubt be devastated to hear that his player's progress has been halted in such a way.

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At 20, the hope is that Van den Berg can make make a fully successful recovery, however, potentially even returning to Liverpool and becoming a regular one day.

He was described as 'magnificent' by Frankie McAvoy during his loan spell at Deepdale last season and his form in the Bundesliga in 2022/23 to date is further proof of his quality.