Arne Slot has season-long Liverpool problem that needs addressing in international break

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A look at the problems Arne Slot is facing on the right side of his defence right nowThe conundrum Arne Slot faces at right-back right now feels like a microcosm of Liverpool's wider problems.That midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai has been the most prominent performer in the position so far in a summer that saw Trent Alexander-Arnold leave before £29m Jeremie Frimpong was signed to compete with emerging academy graduate Conor Bradley has been telling.Both Frimpong and Bradley began the summer looking like rivals for the position, with their contrasting styles, but neither has yet to properly nudge ahead of the other, for various reasons.READ MORE: Arne Slot given major Florian Wirtz conundrum as fresh Liverpool centre-back dilemma emergesREAD MORE: Virgil van Dijk explains Anthony Taylor conversation as Arne Slot crosses Liverpool lineHungary captain Szoboszlai was once more deployed as a full-back in the second half at Chelsea on Saturday evening after Bradley struggled to get to grips with Alejandro Garnacho.Northern Ireland international Bradley was cautioned by referee Anthony Taylor, which led to the Londoners appearing to target him for the remainder of the half. Midfielder Enzo Fernandez was even moved to demand a second yellow after Bradley had once more fouled Garnacho shortly before the break.Slot had Frimpong and Joe Gomez on the bench to turn to but in an effort to inject some creativity into a listless first period at Stamford Bridge, it was Florian Wirtz who was instead summoned, meaning the versatile Szoboszlai was again entrusted to fill in on the right side of defence.Liverpool closed the game out with Szoobszlai and fellow midfielder Ryan Gravenberch in the back four and Wataru Endo ahead of them as the Reds' system ended in something of a mess at Stamford Bridge.Frimpong, who joined from Bayer Leverkusen at the start of June, has started just one game so far in the Premier League, which came in the opening night of the campaign against Bournemouth in mid-August.A hamstring injury in that 4-2 win saw him sidelined for a month and has hampered his ability to hit the ground running at his new club, while his start at Galatasaray in a forward position in place of Mohamed Salah, was an experiment that failed to yield results.Bradley, who turned 22 in July, is a huge prospect for the future and has shown during his time around the first team over the last couple of seasons that he is a player who has so much potential.One drawback, however, has been the consistent injury issues that have held back progress.

So you then consider which game is best for which player."Szoboszlai's versatility and the fact that the trialling of him on the right side of the defence went so well against Newcastle United and Arsenal in August has further complicated the picture on that side.The midfielder has been one of the standout performers for the Reds this term and that, ordinarily, would obviously be viewed as a positive, but with Slot attempting to accommodate £116m Florian Wirtz in the position Szoboszlai played last season, as the most advanced of the midfield three, it has meant the former RB Leipzig man has been deployed out of position in effort to compromise."We have so many players with so many different qualities," says Virgil van Dijk. Conor, he showed it last season so many times how good he is, and Dom showed it this season as well in that position."He gives a different dimension to the game.

He can play in the middle a lot more and can push higher up at times. Obviously we were all gutted that he left in the summer, but that is not the issue."In its own vacuum, the ability to field one of Bradley, Frimpong or Szoboszlai at right-back is not indicative of the problems that have engulfed Liverpool over the course of a chastening week that has seen them lose three times, but the chopping and the changing there hints at the wider issue of Slot still unsure of his best 11 on the back of a big-spending summer.The other side of the break offers the Liverpool boss the chance to settle on a first choice incumbent and allow them to show why they are winning that selection battle.