New candidate emerging to replace Klopp and positive news on the injury front

There rumors, gossip and news never stops at club the size of Liverpool. On this Monday, let's catch you up on the most important things you should know as we officially begin preparations for Brighton on March 31.

Here are the biggest headlines coming from the weekend;

Ruben Amorim emerging as a viable candidate to take over from Jurgen Klopp

The Sporting CP manager has been a name that many considered a darkhorse at best to assume the top spot at Liverpool.

However, there appears to be a growing sense that if the Reds cannot lure Xabi Alonso, Amorim could be the next man up. His Sporting side are a whopping fifteen points clear of Benfica in the Liga Portugal table.

He reportedly scored highly on internal data tests led by Liverpool's Head of Research Will Spearman. Amorim is known as a strong communicator that plays an attractive style of football. That sounds a lot like the current German prowling the Anfield touchline.

Alonso is still the top priority, but it is clear that Amorim is closing the gap and could be a viable candidate when the time comes.

Virgil van Dijk not looking forward to saying goodbye to Klopp

Our towering Captain is none too excited to say farewell to the iconic German coach this summer when he finally walks away.

Klopp has overseen the revitalization of Liverpool and he brought van Dijk from Southampton for a then world-record fee and has seen him rise to being the best central defender in the world. The Dutchman elaborated on his angst;

"I am quite an emotional person and I always find it very difficult to say goodbye to someone. That will certainly be the case now. It's not just the manager who goes, it's mroe peopel. Pepijn, an important person in the staff and I could go on and on."

van Dijk continued: "Saying goodbye is not something I am looking forward to, but we can make it very nice by winning prizes together."

Good news on the injury front

Ibrahima Konate is all systems go as he was named in the France Starting XI over the weekend, so he should be a full participant when players begin returning and preparations for Brighton really kick into gear.

Konate has not played since pulling up lame in the big Europa League win over Sparta Prague. Trent Alexander-Arnold is targeting an early April return, preferably on April 7 against Manchester United. However, there is an outside shot he can play a part in the April 4th meeting with Sheffield United.

Darwin Nunez, who did not travel with the Uruguay national team has been resting and recovering with the club following a very busy stretch. He should be recharged and ready to kick on.

Lastly, Diogo Jota has been making surprising progress on his return to fitness and could be able to play a role in the Manchester United clash as well.