Jurgen Klopp has confirmed Sadio Mane may miss the remainder of Liverpool's season but insisted his side are better placed to cope without the winger.

The Senegal international must wait for the swelling to go down on his knee so he can undergo another scan to determine how much damage he suffered during a collision with Everton defender Leighton Baines in the Merseyside derby.

There is no timescale on how long Mane, who has been one of the outstanding performers in Liverpool's campaign, will be out but Klopp admitted the signs 'are not very positive' for the 24-year-old; the option of surgery has not yet been ruled out.

Sadio Mane will miss Liverpool's next game after picking up an injury against Everton

Jurgen Klopp has provided a worrying update Liverpool fans on the Mane injury situation

It would be a huge blow to Liverpool's aspirations of qualifying for the Champions League if they were to lose Mane, who has scored 13 Premier League goals so far, and the last time he had a prolonged absence in January, his side's results plummeted.

Liverpool only won one of the seven matches for which Mane was absent while he was at the Africa Cup of Nations – that was an FA Cup third round replay at Plymouth – but Klopp insists the situation is now completely different.

'It is possible,' said Klopp, when asked if Mane may not play again until next season. 'We have to wait a little bit. It is not 100 per cent clear. Only thing I can say for sure is that he's not available [on Wednesday]. It's not very positive but we don't know exactly.

'When the knee is swollen and you have to wait, I have never known there to be good news. But even then – especially then – the more difficult a situation seems to be, the better it is to handle. It is not easy. Daniel Sturridge was in team training [on Monday], it is a good option to have back.

Daniel Sturridge is back in the Liverpool first-team frame after returning to training

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'It is my job to find solutions. We have 59 points. A few teams (around us) have less games but they can't win them all (as they have to play each other). The whole season is about preparing for the finish. This is the finish. We expect results from ourselves. We want to fight for everything.

'We need an atmosphere in the stadium and a positive mood around the club. A few key players not available? Yes that is true. But as long as we have got 11 players and a few substitutes? That is fine.'

Reflecting on the results Liverpool endured while Mane was out, Klopp explained: 'A big problem was that it was not just Sadio missing. We had games, we had Manchester City, Sunderland, Manchester United… boom, boom, boom. It was not the freshest part of the season.

'But we were missing Phil as well. The first thing I think about is how we defend against Bournemouth. We don't think about what we miss. We only think about what we can do. The only thing to think about is play the best you can.

West Ham, meanwhile, are interested in signing Lazar Markovic, the winger on loan at Hull

'This is part of the season where the decisions will be made and we have to make sure we make the right decisions for where we want to finish. It's our job to dominate and make sure we get the best results for us.

'We have to think about defending, we have to think about making life as difficult for our opponents. Because we are missing options doesn't mean we can't score goals.'

West Ham, meanwhile, are interested in signing Lazar Markovic, the Liverpool winger currently on loan at Hull. Slaven Bilic is a fan of the Serbia international, who would cost £16million.