The Liverpool head coach admitted he will have to select a midfielder at the heart of defense on Wednesday, while fitness issues have influenced his decision-making in recent games
17:05, 27 Jan 2026
Arne Slot
Slot said he is having issues with his current squad depth
Arne Slot has said he is not worried about the fitness levels of his Liverpool squad but admitted he is having to find the balance between pushing his players and also ensuring they are given sufficient rest.
The Reds’ squad depth has been a recurring issue so far this season, with Liverpool having just 16 outfield players available for the midweek training session ahead of the Qarabag match. The absences of Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez have added to the mounting list of missing players.
With Giovanni Leoni also unavailable for the remainder of the season, Slot revealed he will have to play a midfielder at the heart of defense on Wednesday, while he also claimed that, in his opinion, the early Champions League exit helped Liverpool win the title last season.
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This term, the Reds are still competing on three fronts, but the concerns with Liverpool’s squad depth could ultimately be the side’s undoing.
“That's not a worry, but that's a difficulty,” Slot acknowledged in Tuesday’s pre-match press conference.
“I can assure you that I would have preferred to start with Hugo [Ekitike] against Bournemouth. If we probably would have had one or two extra days, he would have 100 percent started. But he was out for injury for two weeks and then he had to play quite a lot of games, and with only one no.9 available for the upcoming months, it made sense to me to manage his load as well.
“That is what I had to do with more players. Jeremie Frimpong, is another example of that, giving him another time 90. I think you could see that he was tired just before I took him off. At least that was my take on it. And then it is a big risk to keep him on.
Arne Slot has insisted that Andrew Robertson remains an important player for Liverpool.
Slot spoke to the press ahead of the Qarabag game(Image: 2026 Getty Images)
“But I want to emphasize the fact, how much respect I have for the players that we have because it's almost constantly the same players that have to play. And they have to do this in difficult circumstances.
“What I mean with that is, results are not what we want and we get scrutinized. We all are scrutinized. We get the criticism that we deserve. But usually, if you get so much criticism, that does something to you mentally.
“If you then have to play so many minutes, I can give you multiple examples of players then getting injured.”
Jeremie Frimpong
Frimpong had to be replaced early against Bournemouth(Image: Getty Images)
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Asked if he is finding it a difficult to balance the needs to select his best players and the physical demands of the fixture schedule, Slot replied: “Very hard. Especially with the problems we have with long-term injuries.
“Now I have to adapt the system or put players in different positions. Taking Jeremie off, no one would complain if I brought in a similar player. But I had to end the [Bournemouth] game with four defenders where only two were real defenders. That does not help with the narrative. That I am completely aware of.”
Slot added that he is expecting Konate and Gomez to return soon, while Federico Chiesa is back to face Qarabag after missing the last games.