Arne Slot could hand out a Liverpool debut against Chelsea after Ibrahima Konate misses training

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Liverpool have growing fitness concerns ahead of their meeting with Chelsea and Arne Slot may have to rely on youth to fill out his squad.The Dutchman has been reluctant to feature too many Reds academy players this season, with Rio Ngumoha the only youngster getting regular minutes.But Trey Nyoni has been around the team a lot, while Mor Talla Ndiaye is also starting to get more chances in training and may now need to come in for Ibrahima Konate. Getty IDs: 2272039966 Mor Talla Ndiaye may need to cover for Ibrahima KonateFootage of Liverpool training before Chelsea has been doing the rounds this week, and it is not good news for Slot.We already knew that Mohamed Salah and Alexander Isak had injuries, with both forwards ruled out of the Manchester United loss last week.However, it was also noted that Konate had no part in the pre-Chelsea training on Tuesday.The Frenchman and Virgil van Dijk are Liverpool’s only two fit senior centre-backs this season, with Joe Gomez also needed at right-back and quite often missing with his own problems.In turn, if Konate remains unable to train before Saturday, there is a chance that Ndiaye could be handed his Premier League debut.The 18-year-old arrived over the winter from Amitie FC and was initially put in Rob Page’s U21 squad.However, he was named on a young bench against Manchester United last time out, and Konate’s issues could force Slot into handing the teenager a debut versus the Blues.Rob Page verdict on Mor Talla Ndiaye is great newsDespite being at the club for less than six months, Ndiaye has earned high praise from Page already.Speaking in late April, the coach said: “He made some brilliant tackles later on in the game, and he knew he was on thin ice because of the booking early on.

But again, part of his development, he’s had to learn to play while he’s on a booking.“What I’ve seen from him is a diagonal pass. He is brave enough to find the eights in the pocket with a pass, and intelligent enough.

He reads the game well, and he’s aggressive. He wins some big headers today.“So, all in all, there’s a lot there to work with, and a lot of potential that we see.”It may be slightly early for Ndiaye to be given his first Premier League start, but a lack of depth at centre-back could force Slot’s hand.But based on what we have seen from the young Liverpool stopper to date, he could well be up for the challenge.Join Our NewsletterReceive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox