Eddie Howe's Magpies face Arne Slot and Liverpool in what should be an electric game next Monday night
Liverpool manager Arne Slot
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot bring his side to Newcastle on Monday night
(Image: PA)
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot is sweating over the fitness of right-back Jeremie Frimpong for Monday's night's Premier League showdown with Newcastle United at St James' Park.
The Dutch defender made his Anfield debut in the opening game of the new season as the reigning champions kicked off their title defence with a 4-2 victory over Bournemouth.
Newcastle got their season under way with a goalless draw at Aston Villa on Saturday lunchtime, but now all the focus is on the visit of the Reds under the lights at the start of next week.
There has been much talk of the ongoing Alexander Isak transfer saga, of course, with the Swede pushing for a move to Liverpool before transfer deadline day.
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However, Eddie Howe and Co will be fully focused on picking up what would be a huge win in their first Premier League home game of the season, although they are well aware of the size of the challenge ahead of them.
Slot has plenty of options in his side, having signed the likes of Frimpong, Milos Kerkez, Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike in what has been a busy summer at Anfield.
But former Bayer Leverkusen defender Frimpong is now an injury concern for the St James' Park game, having been taken off early in that win over the Cherries.
The 24-year-old picked up a hamstring problem, and with fellow right-back Conor Bradley already sidelined, it's an area of concern for Slot ahead of the big game.
Jeremie Frimpong of Liverpool
Liverpool's Jeremie Frimpong picked up an injury against Bournemouth
Joe Gomez could deputise, although the Dutch boss revealed he is still well short of match fitness after making a return from injury during pre-season.
“It wasn’t out of luxury,” Slot said of the decision to take Frimpong off. “Jeremie Frimpong felt his hamstring at half-time and made a lot of sprints.
“He was doing quite well, but our other full-back, Conor Bradley, is already injured with a hamstring injury, so you don’t to take the risk of losing another full-back.
“You could argue, why don’t you play Joe Gomez there, but he only had two sessions in pre-season and could only play half an hour, so we started with Wataru Endo and our left full-back Milos Kerkez.”
It's a situation Newcastle will be keeping a close eye on, although Anthony Gordon is likely to be needed as a central striker instead of his usual left-wing role.
Harvey Barnes started against Villa on the left last weekend after finishing last season strongly, although that could change should Newcastle sign a centre-forward before Monday night's game.