Arne Slot on Rotation and Szoboszlai Fitness Ahead of Tottenham Cup Tie
Liverpool are set to play the first leg of their League Cup semi-final against Tottenham on Wednesday.
For the top English clubs, those competing to be in the Premier League title hunt and wanting to make a run in Europe, the autumn’s League Cup rounds are opportunities for a bit of rotation and to perhaps play fringe and youth players.
If you’re still in the competition come the new year and the semi-final round, though, that math can start to change, and Liverpool manager Arne Slot will have his first chance to decide just how strong a lineup he’s willing and able to run out when his Reds face Tottenham on Wednesday evening.
“I think if you look at all the fixtures we’ve had this season there are many things that go into choosing a lineup,” Slot noted at his pre-match press conference. “Short-term, long-term, the qualities of the opponent, where are my players’ [fitness levels].
“It’s always going to be a decision made for, in our opinion, the best lineup. In some situations, maybe for Southampton away or for some other games, in my opinion the best lineup was the players that hadn’t started a lot, but let’s see what it is for tomorrow for when we play against Tottenham.”
A disappointing 2-2 draw with historic rivals Manchester United on the weekend—albeit in a game Liverpool were the better side in and created around three expected goals worth of chances to half that for United—and an early round FA Cup tie against Accrington Stanley next could mean a strong lineup tomorrow.
There could still be room, though, for a few rotational players who have been key to getting Liverpool to this stage of the tournament, including goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher. There likely won’t be a starring turn, though, for Dominik Szoboszlai as he returns from injury.
“Yesterday he wasn’t fit yet,” Slot replied when asked about the high-energy midfielder who was missing over the weekend against United. “If he’s fit today I would doubt he’s available to start the game but hopefully he’s in today as yesterday he wasn’t.”
Source: liverpooloffside.sbnation.com
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