'Far from ideal' Liverpool injury update offers chance for first start of season vs Nottingham Forest

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Arne Slot confirmed Liverpool have suffered two new injury blows ahead of Saturday’s Premier League match against Nottingham Forest.The Dutch coach did deliver one positive update, announcing that Alisson Becker is ready for a return to the starting XI.However, the glow of Alisson coming back did not take long to fade, as Slot reported that both Conor Bradley and Florian Wirtz suffered injuries on international duty.Join our newsletter for news & smart analysis. Bradley’s issue appears to be the worse of the two, with the Liverpool right-back now seemingly set to miss the next three weeks of action.Given Jereme Frimpong is still several weeks away from a return, the Northern Irishman’s absence poses a big problem for Slot ahead of Saturday’s game.Without a natural right-back to line up against Forest, the Liverpool head coach has little option to give Joe Gomez a first Premier League start of the season.Photo by Shaun Brooks – CameraSport via Getty ImagesJoe Gomez must start against Nottingham ForestWhile right-back is not Gomez’s most natural position, the 28-year-old is a more than serviceable option for Liverpool to have.If Slot does not want to throw a midfielder in at full-back, then Gomez simply has to start against Forest.READ MORE: Arne Slot drops intriguing transfer hint when asked if Liverpool will sign Marc Guehi in JanuaryInjury is of course an issue for the England international as well, however, and Slot even confirmed on Friday that Gomez had missed training the day before.“Joe Gomez has played two times 90 minutes throughout 2025, so it’s maybe a bit of a risk to play him seven times in 22 days,” said the Dutchman.

Who will win Liverpool vs Nottingham Forest on Saturday? Photo by Alex Livesey – Danehouse/Getty Images “He missed out on training as well by the way but we are expecting him to train today.”Clearly, if Gomez is not in great shape himself then the choice becomes more difficult for Slot, but if he comes through training fine then he has to get the nod.“Jeremie is going to be out for two or three weeks as well, so it’ll be interesting who plays at right-back!” added the Liverpool head coach.

If Gomez is ready, it simply has to be him.Arne Slot admits Liverpool injuries ‘far from ideal’Although Gomez will likely be fine against Forest, Slot’s point that he cannot be relied upon throughout the next run of games is a fair one.And according to the 47-year-old, he is going to have to come up with another solution, with Bradley not expected back for at least three weeks.“We do have some issues after the international break, Conor Bradley is not able to play unfortunately,” he said.“Florian Wirtz is not able to play. Florian shouldn’t have to be that long.”Gomez can provide Liverpool some relief on Saturday, but beyond that, fans will hope that the medical team can work some wonders with either Bradley or Frimpong.