Liverpool boss Arne Slot. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)placeholder image
Liverpool boss Arne Slot. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Liverpool face Barnsley in the FA Cup third round and Arne Slot has decisions to make when it comes to his team selection.
Liverpool turn their attention to the FA Cup when they welcome Barnsley to Anfield in the third round.
The Reds will not be taking Monday’s encounter against the League One side for granted despite there being 57 places between the two teams in the pyramid.
Arne Slot will be aware that the FA Cup is Liverpool’s most realistic chance of silverware this season. The Reds have surrendered the Premier League title as they sit 14 points behind leaders Arsenal and are out of the Carabao Cup. Slot’s side might be in the Champions League but that is arguably the most difficult club competition in the world to win.
Barnsley cannot be underestimated although Slot may use the tie to rotate his squad. He is already short of senior options, with Conor Bradley being added to the treatment table after being stretchered off in Thursday night’s 0-0 draw against Arsenal. While there is a chance that Hugo Ekitike could be back from a hamstring issue, he might not be risked from the outset after missing the past two games. With Alexander Isak sidelined for the next couple of months with a broken leg, Ekitike will be carefully managed.
Slot may also want to hand respite to some of his other players. Captain Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate have started every Premier League and Champions League game this term. With Bradley potentially ruled out for a prolonged period, Jeremie Frimpong will require protection while Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai could also do with a rest.
Players such as Andy Robertson, Federico Chiesa and Joe Gomez are likely to come in. There is also expected to be a start for Rio Ngumoha. While the 17-year-old winger is very much regarded as a first-team squad member, scoring a dramatic stoppage-time winner in a 3-2 victory at Newcastle United in August, his chance of late have been seldom.
But judging by the under-21s team that played Norwich City in Premier League, there may not be too many other youngsters involved. Trey Nyoni and Calvin Ramsay were on the bench at Arsenal so they could come in.
However, for the likes of Kieran Morrison, Amara Nallo, Wellity Lucky, Trent Kone-Doherty and Will Wright - signed from Salford City in the summer transfer window - they may be overlooked. In the 3-2 win against Norwich in Premier League 2, the quintet featured, with Nallo scoring Rob Page’s side’s first goal.
While some might well make the bench, with the Barnsley game not taking place until more than three days later, it suggests that Slot will go fairly strong. Given that Liverpool were knocked out of the FA Cup at Plymouth Argyle, who were bottom of the Championship, last season the Anfield boss may be taking no chances.
Curtis Jones was an unused substitute at Arsenal so he is likely to return to the starting line-up. Given the shortage of attackers, with Mo Salah representing Egypt at the African Cup of Nations, Cody Gakpo may keep his spot while either Van Dijk or Konate may continue in central defence, especially as Giovanni Leoni (ACL) and Wataru Endo (ankle) are absent.
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