Conor Bradley injury: Everything we know about surgery, recovery timeline and Liverpool next steps

Conor Bradley had already had an injury-plagued season and now he will miss the rest of the campaign after sustaining a serious knee injury against Arsenal last week

(Image: 2026 Marc Atkins)

Liverpool's worst fears around Conor Bradley have been realized after it emerged that he will miss the remainder of the season with a knee injury.

Bradley went down after jarring his knee during the closing stages of Liverpool's 0-0 draw with Arsenal in midweek, before Arsenal forward Gabriel Martinelli threw a ball at him and kneed him in the back to try and get him off the pitch. Speaking after, Arne Slot admitted that he "feared the worst" over the young defender.

Liverpool issued a statement on Sunday confirming that Bradley had sustained a significant injury, adding to Arne Slot's selection woes.

What is the injury?

Scans on Bradley's knee thankfully eased fears that the player had ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee, but the player has suffered significant bone and ligament damage.

Liverpool said that Bradley will undergo surgery in the coming days ahead of a period of rehabilitation.

How long will be Bradley be out for?

Liverpool said that no timeframe is currently being placed on Bradley's return, but it has been reported that he is expected to miss the remainder of the season.

He is the second Liverpool defender to suffer an apparent season-ending injury this term, after new signing Giovanni Leoni sustained a serious knee injury of his own back in September.

Conor Bradley was stretchered off during the draw with Arsenal(Image: Getty Images)

Liverpool's statement in full

Here's the short statement that Liverpool published on Bradley's injury: "Liverpool FC can confirm Conor Bradley has sustained a significant knee injury. The right-back suffered the issue in the latter stages of Thursday night's Premier League fixture away at Arsenal.

"Bradley will undergo surgery in the coming days and then begin a period of rehabilitation at the AXA Training Centre. No timeframe is being placed on his return to playing at this stage of the process."

Who could replace him in the team?

Unfortunately, Bradley being injured is nothing new for Liverpool, so Slot will already have a good idea in his mind of how he will go about replacing the Northern Ireland captain.

Jeremie Frimpong figured in an advanced role against Arsenal but was originally signed as a replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold, so he could be moved back to right-back.

Joe Gomez is also an option – though he has had injury concerns of his own over the last year – while Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones have both figured as full-backs under Slot.

Szoboszlai has been Liverpool's best midfielder in recent months though, so and Slot would no doubt prefer to keep him in a midfield role.