Mohamed Salah will return to Liverpool later this month after featuring for Egypt at the AFCON.
His country are back in action on Saturday, facing Ivory Coast in the quarter-finals of the competition.
Should Salah and his teammates make it to the final on January 18, he will miss the upcoming meetings with Barnsley on Monday and Burnley on January 17.
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A Champions League clash with Marseille on January 21 could be his first match back; if not, it will be the Premier League tie against Bournemouth on the 24th.
There are a lot of questions surrounding the future of Salah ahead of his Liverpool return, given Arne Slot was hardly using him pre-AFCON.
Mohamed Salah could have starting role after Liverpool return
But the 0-0 draw with Arsenal this week may have given us a clearer picture of the plan for the 33-year-old moving forward.
Before his outburst post-Leeds United last year, Salah was benched for three Premier League games in a row.
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He was then dropped against Inter Milan and was a substitute in the win over Brighton and Hove Albion, coming on after an injury to Joe Gomez.
And an injury that took place on Thursday likely means Slot, whether he wants to or not, will need to give Salah a starting role when he is back from AFCON.
The Dutchman has been using right-back Jeremie Frimpong on the wing in recent matches.
However, Frimpong will now be needed at right-back after Conor Bradley picked up an injury against the Gunners.
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Gabriel Martinelli appeals while Liverpool's Conor Bradley sits injured during the Premier League match between the two teams at the Emirates Stadium.
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How long will Conor Bradley be out for?
The Northern Irishman’s absence will leave Liverpool, as had been the case for much of the season, short of depth at right-back.
Bradley left Arsenal on crutches, and according to Slot, while an exact injury timeframe is yet to be confirmed, they fear the worst for the full-back.
In turn, Frimpong will likely move into the back-four, and given Federico Chiesa hardly ever starts matches, Salah is the best option on the right wing.
Dominik Szoboszlai could be used in that role, but Liverpool’s midfield improved against Arsenal when the Hungarian, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch were playing together.
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