Arne Slot already revealed two players who can replace Giovanni Leoni after Liverpool injury setback

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The Italian was impressed on his Liverpool debut against Southampton, but saw his maiden outing come to a premature end as he was stretchered off late on.

Speaking after the final whistle, the Reds head coach confirmed that the 18-year-old would be sent for further assessment and had not been hopeful about his injury.

Undergoing scans on Wednesday, it has now been confirmed that Leoni has suffered a serious knee injury.

The ECHO understands that Liverpool are refusing to place a timescale on the length of the absence at present, but it's understood that club medical staff are fearful of a serious issue for the young Italian.

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A lengthy lay-off for Leoni would leave the Reds down to just three senior centre-back options, with Joe Gomez acting as back-up to first-choice pairing Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate.

However, both Gomez and Konate have suffered from injury problems in the past and remain the subject of transfer speculation.

The England international attracted interest from the likes of AC Milan and Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer, while the France international remains out of contract at the end of the season.

Liverpool do have further options in their academy ranks, with the likes of Rhys Williams, Amara Nallo and Luke Chambers having all represented the first team in the past.

Williams was an unused substitute for the Reds against Southampton on Tuesday night, but the 24-year-old, who spent last season on loan at Morecambe, has not played for the first team since 2021.

Nallo was sent off on his Liverpool debut against PSV Eindhoven last January, while Chambers is yet to feature at any level during the current campaign after seeing a season-long loan with Wigan Athletic ended prematurely by injury last season.

Slot is more likely to turn to a senior player as centre-back cover in the absence of Leoni, with vice-captain Andy Robertson finishing Tuesday night’s at the heart of defence following the Italian’s withdrawal.

The Scot played at centre-back against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League last season, and was also utilised there on a number of occasions throughout pre-season.

But Slot recently name-dropped two others players he could turn to instead if needed when addressing Liverpool’s collapsed move for Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi on transfer deadline day.

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“Ryan (Gravenberch) and Wata (Endo) can play there,” Slot pointed out earlier this month.

“So it is not like all of a sudden we don’t have options in that position anymore.”

Gravenberch has never started a game at centre-back, but has been turned to by Slot on more than one occasion later on in games when wishing to introduce attacking players.

Meanwhile, Wataru Endo actually started his career at centre-back in Japan and has played a handful of times there for Liverpool.

Speaking during the summer, when reflecting on his limited game-time last season, the 32-year-old suggested he could be considered as a centre-back option in the campaign ahead.

"I don't mind where I play,” he insisted during the Reds’ pre-season tour of the Far East.

That’s my style.

"I played as a centre-back when I played in Japan, so I don't mind which position I play and I just give 100% every time."

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Meanwhile, speaking during a live Q&A event in his hometown of Kanagawa, as quoted by Soccer Digest, he said: “I think there's a high possibility that I'll play in various positions in the future, so I think it'll be fine if we can carry that over to the next stage."

With Leoni set to be ruled out for a number of months, Liverpool could revisit interest in Guehi in January.

However, such a move had previously been considered unlikely given that the player will be available on a free at the end of the season, with it remaining to be seen if such a stance will now be tested by the Reds' injury setback.