Injured Reds duo to return home

Liverpool duo Martin Skrtel and Nabil El Zhar are to return early from the club's pre-season tour of Asia in order to undergo injury scans. Both players limped out of Wednesday's 1-1 friendly draw with Thailand in Bangkok after only entering the match as second-half substitutes. Liverpool have confirmed that Skrtel has a hamstring problem, while El Zhar has sustained knee ligament damage. Both players are set to fly back to England to undergo further assessments which will identify the neccesary treatment and allow a recovery period to be set. Centre-back Skrtel's injury will come as a major setback to boss Rafa Benitez, who has yet to see his side win in three pre-season matches. El Zhar was not a first-team regular in the last campaign but the forward is highly rated at Anfield and recently signed a contract extension until 2012.

Source: SKY_Sports