Federico Chiesa's Liverpool career may be set for take-off against Brighton after Arne Slot admission - opinion
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Liverpool have some injury worries to contend with as they aim for a first Premier League win in three matches against Brighton this Saturday.The Reds were forced into trying a new system on Tuesday after all three of Mohamed Salah, Federico Chiesa and Cody Gakpo were ruled out.Of the trio, Chiesa looks likely to be the only one back for the weekend’s fixture, with doubt clouding Salah’s involvement and Gakpo certain to be absent.Join our newsletter for news & smart analysis. Wrong answers only Crunch time for Salah 👇 Join the debate; share your insight.
Use the comment button on the bottom left to have your say “Federico is not ill anymore, he trained yesterday and today again, so I assume he’s ready,” Arne Slot said during Friday morning’s press conference.Although Liverpool looked good in their new formation at San Siro, a new injury problem could potentially mean Chiesa is in line for only his second ever Premier League start.Alexander Isak knock could hand Federico Chiesa a rare startWhile many supporters will be keen to see Slot re-employ the 4-4-2 system which worked so well against Inter Milan, it ultimately may not be possible.Frustratingly, while ruling Gakpo out for ‘weeks,’ the Liverpool head coach also admitted that Alexander Isak had picked up another new ‘knock.’ in midweek.Photo by Sathire Kelpa/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty ImagesREAD MORE: Arne Slot confirms Mohamed Salah plan ahead of Liverpool vs Brighton“Alex got a knock in the first half. Let’s see how he’s recovered from that,” Slot said, to a silent, collective groan from the Liverpool fanbase.While caution is probably best in regards to Isak, it could mean that the Reds have little choice but to revert back to a 4-3-3.With no Salah, no Gakpo and Hugo Ekitike needed to play centrally, this could really open the door for Chiesa to get his first Premier League start since against Brighton last May.
Could we see this again tomorrow? 👇 Join the debate; share your insight. Use the comment button on the bottom left to have your say Given Gakpo is likely to be missing for a while, the Italian will arguably never get a better opportunity to finally light a match under his Liverpool career.Could Arne Slot play Rio Ngumoha instead?Despite Liverpool’s lack of options in wide areas heading into the Brighton game, there is a chance that Chiesa is still deemed unworthy of a start by Slot.The Dutch coach has one more ace up his sleeve for the left wing position: Rio Ngumoha.After a blistering start, Ngumoha has been used less as the season has worn on, but the youngster will also have his eye on the opening created by Gakpo’s absence.While Chiesa would be a more popular choice to finally start in his natural position on Saturday, fans also want to see the prodigious talents of Ngumoha on display more often.Missing a number of their regular goal-scorers, Liverpool supporters could be toasting an unlikely hero against the Seagulls.