UK’s Football Ass’n.Insurers to Cover Star Player’s Wages after Injury

The UK’s Football [Soccer] Association’s insurers will pay compensation to Liverpool after midfielder Steven Gerrard sustained a hamstring injury on England duty.

The FA confirmed Friday it has a comprehensive voluntary insurance scheme that covers for injuries to England players during international matches.

The organization said the scheme will cover the wages of Gerrard, who will be out for a month after limping out of Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat to France at Wembley with a grade two hamstring tear.

British media reports said Liverpool will receive around 500,000 British pounds ($800,000) in compensation as a result.

The insurance scheme has already covered for injuries sustained on England duty in recent months by Michael Dawson, Theo Walcott, Jermain Defoe and Rio Ferdinand. The English FA is one of the few associations to have such a scheme.

The loss of its captain will be a big blow to Liverpool, which recently found some form to climb out of the Premier League relegation zone and up into the top half of the table. The 18-time champions had picked up 10 points out of a possible 12 before losing at Stoke last Saturday, and are now 11th in the standings.

“I’m frustrated and disappointed to lose such an important player for such a long period of time after a friendly game,” Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson said Friday.