Liverpool have begun a full medical investigation into Daniel Sturridge's persistent injury troubles after the striker suffered yet another setback in his recovery.
Sturridge suffered a tear in his thigh which is expected to keep the striker sidelined until early 2015. His Liverpool and England teammate, Jordan Henderson, told ESPN FC that the 25-year-old is "devastated" and at a "low point."
Manager Brendan Rodgers has been unable to field Sturridge since August and revealed that the club's medical staff are doing all they can to understand the source of his repeated problems.
"It's hugely disappointing to lose a player of that quality," Rodgers said in the Liverpool Echo. "It happened in a session and it was quite innocuous. He did it when he just flicked the ball, it wasn't a shot or anything that looked serious.
"Obviously he felt the pain and then when the medical team told me the next day after the scan it was disappointing.
"Whether Daniel needs to see a specialist is something that the medical team are looking into. I think that's his ninth injury on that thigh from previous clubs and here so there is an issue there somewhere.
"Most players you'll find want to play through an injury to get onto the field. Very few go out there and are 100 percent. The scan shows a slight tear just below where he had a previous injury."
Sturridge's absence has come amid a poor run of form for Liverpool, who have won just four of the 14 games he has missed this season.
Mario Balotelli, who joined the club for 16 million pounds this summer, has so far failed to fill the void left by Luis Suarez's 75 million-pound departure to Barcelona. Along with Rickie Lambert and Fabio Borini, the Italy striker is yet to score a Premier League goal this season.
Liverpool may now look to strengthen their attack in January and, according to reports, could attempt to bring Divock Origi to Anfield sooner than expected. The Belgian signed from Lille last summer but was loaned back to the Ligue 1 club until next year.
However, Rodgers is focusing on improving his side's form -- starting with Sunday's clash at Crystal Palace.
"Now we just have to concentrate and focus on the players we do have," he added. "It's that simple -- make the best of what we have available.
"At this moment in time it's about what is within the squad because that's the players we have available. It will present an opportunity to the guys who have maybe been on the sidelines for quite a while.
"We can't worry about what we had last season or what we have lost. We have to look at the players we have. We have an exciting period of games coming up.
"We want to ensure we go back to our basics and be really hard to beat and be strong and aggressive.
"We want to make an impact in front of goal. Now there's an opportunity for some players who didn't think they would get a chance."