Slot has a 'proper striker' in the Liverpool academy emerging as a candidate to face Everton today - opinion
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Arne Slot has a dilemma up front for Sunday’s Merseyside Derby against Everton, with Liverpool set to begin life without Hugo Ekitike.The Reds will be missing Ekitike for months, and as Alexander Isak continues to work his way back to full fitness, Slot will need other players to carry the load in attack.The Liverpool head coach has already named Cody Gakpo and Federico Chiesa as options to play at centre-forward in the coming weeks, but, in the absence of Jayden Danns, Slot could also look to academy striker Will Wright, who hit another double on Saturday. And with Hugo Ekitike out, who should be Liverpool's front three at the Hill Dickinson?
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Chris Brunskill/Fantasista Wright hits double ahead of Merseyside DerbyAfter being signed from Salford City last summer, Wright has been strangely overlooked in conversations surrounding Liverpool‘s central striking options.Much of the focus has been on Danns, but Slot has already confirmed that the 21-year-old is not available for the time being.Having scored twice for the Liverpool U21s in a friendly against the i2i Football Academy on Saturday, Wright certainly is.Hailed by U21s boss Rob Page as a ‘proper striker‘ in March, Wright has had a good debut season with the Reds, scoring four goals in 14 Premier League 2 appearances despite being only 18. His latest brace underlines his potential as an option to bolster Slot’s ranks ahead of Sunday’s derby.Photo by DARREN STAPLES/AFP via Getty ImagesREAD MORE: ‘Exciting’ Liverpool academy star could earn rare chance vs Everton after Hugo Ekitike blowWright should be on the bench at the Hill DickinsonWithout Ekitike, and indeed Danns, Liverpool’s striking options now have a moth-eaten look to them.But as he searches for answers ahead of the Reds’ first ever visit to the Hill Dickinson Stadium, Slot cannot forget about Wright.It is a big ask for such a young player to come into a big game like this, but Rio Ngumoha has shown that the fearlessness of youth may be exactly what Liverpool need in their current predicament.
Which exciting Liverpool youngster will have the brightest future at Anfield? Credit: George Wood/Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Getty Images Wright may not possess the prodigious talent of Ngumoha, but with the Reds desperately short of natural strikers, and still needing to protect Isak’s fitness, he deserves to be considered at the very least.So too does Keyrol Figueroa, who also scored two goals on Saturday to continue what has been a prolific season for him.With 11 goals under his belt in the Premier League 2, Figueroa may be wondering whether Ekitike’s injury could finally see him rewarded with first-team involvement.For both he and Wright, the first window of opportunity could come on the banks of the Mersey on Sunday.