Liverpool lost against AC Milan on Saturday as they took a step forward in their pre-season preparations.

There were some positives to take from the game for the Reds, but they were ultimately undone by their vulnerability on the counter-attack.

Although Arne Slot will be disappointed by that, it is also fair to say that the Liverpool team who played on Saturday will not resemble the finished product when the season begins.

There were plenty of players missing from the Liverpool squad, with a mixture of injury and unavailability limiting Slot’s options.

Arne Slot CONFIRMS Luis Diaz's absence from Liverpool's pre-season defeat by AC Milan was linked to his future - with Bayern Munich in talks over big-money move	Slot reveals why Diaz missed Milan friendly	Arne Slot explains why Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez weren’t in Liverpool matchday squad v AC Milan

Eyebrows were raised pre-match, when it was revealed that neither Luis Diaz nor Darwin Nunez would play against Milan.

Both have been heavily linked with exits during the summer.

And while it was assumed that this was the reason for their absence ahead of the match, Slot cleared things up once the final whistle had blown.

Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images

Prior to Liverpool’s game on Saturday, speculation over Diaz moving to Bayern Munich continued apace.

The Colombian appears destined to leave, and it looks likely that he has already played his final match for the Reds.

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Slot looks to have confirmed that to be the case after Saturday’s match, with journalist James Pearce revealing that the Liverpool head coach cited the uncertainty over Diaz as reason for his absence against Milan.

However, while the same had been assumed about Nunez, Slot actually claimed that injury had ruled the Uruguayan out.

READ MORE: Liverpool fans are all in agreement over who should replace Luis Diaz after what happened against AC Milan

“Arne Slot confirms that Luis Diaz was left out v AC Milan due to the ongoing discussions over his future,” Pearce reported on X.

“However, Darwin Nunez’s absence was down to a minor fitness issue.”

While Diaz looks all set to leave Liverpool in the coming days, the same may not be the case for Nunez.

Liverpool may still sign Alexander Isak this summer, and if they do, there is surely no room for Nunez as well as Hugo Ekitike.

However, should the move for Isak fail to bear fruit, perhaps the 26-year-old should still be kept around.

Either way, given Slot was not shy to confirm that Diaz had been left out due to question marks over his future, it does seem likely that Nunez’s fitness issue is genuine.

What that means for his own future remains to be seen, but we’ll surely find out soon enough.