Federico Chiesa will play a role in Liverpool’s EFL Cup quarter-final away to Southampton tomorrow night.
The Italy international has struggled with injuries and a general lack of fitness since joining from Juventus in the summer and has only played three games, the last of which came in the win over West Ham at Anfield on September 25.
He was an unused substitute in the 2-2 draw with Fulham at the weekend but will play a role at St Mary’s.
Arne Slot’s provides an injury update on his squad 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/DL7WHgTUT4
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 17, 2024
Reds boss Arne Slot said: “It’s definitely a moment where he can get minutes. The question is the number of minutes. You can’t expect him to play 90, I don’t think, especially at this level where the intensity is so high because he’s been out for five or six months now. If he has a good training session, he gets minutes.
“Whether he starts or comes in and maybe plays the second half, that’s something we have to make a decision on.”
Diogo Jota will not start after missing training yesterday, but Slot hinted that Japanese midfielder Wataru Endo would play.
Liverpool’s progress is ‘normal’
Liverpool go into the game having seen their lead at the top of the Premier League shrink to two points, but are still going strong in all three competitions they currently compete in.
Asked if he had been surprised by Liverpool’s impressive start, Slot said: “I think it’s normal for Liverpool to fight for every trophy and be in every cup for a long time to make it all the way.”
“That happened last season when this club won that (EFL Cup) competition. So I’m not surprised at how well we’re fighting for these three trophies at the moment, and the fourth (the FA Cup) starts in January.
“It’s a challenge because we also have a lot of competition from other teams here. If you look at the other teams in the League Cup that are still there, you will see that none of the teams that are there will have an easy route to the final.”
Slot feels sorry for Martin
Liverpool face a Southampton side still reeling from the sacking of head coach Russell Martin on Sunday, fresh from their 5-0 home defeat to Tottenham.
Slot expressed his sympathy for former Scotland international and Wolves boss Gary O’Neil, who was also sacked at the weekend, but the accepted results ultimately decide a manager’s fate.
He said: “In my opinion it is a shame. These things happen. Russell Martin did so well for Southampton last season. (His team) also played good football this season. We experienced this when we had such a hard day there. We only beat them 3-2.
“So you always feel sorry when managers don’t get a chance to move on. Especially in these two situations, because for me they were managers who had a good idea of how they wanted their team to play. Unfortunately they couldn’t score enough points – then the managers will be fired.”
