Image Credits: Imago Images
The Reds will begin their 2025/26 FA Cup journey tomorrow.
Liverpool will face Barnsley on Monday evening, with Arne Slot already admitting that he learned from his mistakes last season.
Plymouth Argyle caused a major upset when they knocked out Liverpool in the third-round last season, and with the heavily weakened side that Arne Slot fielded playing a major role in that defeat, the Dutchman has pledged to field a stronger eleven this time around.
Speaking in his press conference ahead of the game, he said:
“Last season I made the decision that some players needed to rest in the FA Cup because you cannot play every player every single time. But it’s obvious that we’re not in the League Cup anymore.”
“But I can guarantee you that on Monday you will see all the players that you saw [on Thursday], maybe with some substitutions but then they will be on the bench. So that is going to be different than last season against Plymouth.”
Whilst it is clear that a stronger squad will face off against Barnsley than what we saw against Plymouth, there will be still be some new faces and youngsters within the squad as the FA Cup provides the perfect opportunity for them to prove their worth.
This fixture was perfect for the return of one player in particular.
Jayden Danns has been sidelined since the end of September with a serious hamstring injury, the latest setback in a series of unfortunate fitness issues for the nineteen-year-old.
The striker was meant to return to parts of training last week, but suffered another setback, ruling him out until at least February.
When asked if Danns would be an option for the game on Monday, Arne Slot said: “No, not fit enough. Not even training, if I’m correct.”
“One of the players that got a stress fracture because he was young and from what I’ve been told, was a bit over-trained.”
“That’s why we are so careful with Rio Ngumoha. He’s two days a week off the pitch [in training], if possible, to not have that same situation with him.”
“But Jayden is definitely not available in the short term.”
Another frustrating blow for Jayden Danns who showed so much promise when he was introduced into he first-team set up during Jurgen Klopp’s last season in charge.
He has featured once for Liverpool’s first team so far this season, an appearance that consisted of just 15 minutes against Southampton in the League Cup and he will now have to wait even longer for another chance.
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