Slot Faces Crucial Salah Call as Liverpool Prepare for Sunderland Showdown
Liverpool have suffered defeats in their last two home fixtures but now have the chance to redeem themselves on Wednesday night.
The reigning Premier League titleholders host Sunderland at Anfield in league action as they look to recover from surprising home defeats against Nottingham Forest and PSV Eindhoven, with Saturday's 2-0 triumph over West Ham United restoring some belief after a series of poor performances.
The Reds face a relentless schedule with four fixtures in the coming 10 days, meaning Arne Slot must utilize his squad rotation during this demanding winter stretch. Following a summer expenditure of £446 million ($589.1 million), the Dutch manager has plenty of personnel at his disposal.
Here's how he might set up his team against Sunderland.
Liverpool Predicted Lineup vs. Sunderland (4-2-3-1)
GK: Alisson—The Brazilian goalkeeper would have welcomed a peaceful afternoon at the London Stadium after shipping three goals in his prior appearance. He'll be hoping for another calm evening against the Black Cats—and possibly another shutout.
RB: Dominik Szoboszlai—Joe Gomez delivered a solid display at right-back versus the Hammers, but Slot has suggested changes for midweek, with the England international, who has been dealing with fitness concerns, potentially giving way to Szoboszlai. Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong are nearing their comebacks.
CB: Ibrahima Konaté—Now that Real Madrid rumors and transfer speculation have quieted down, Konaté can concentrate on regaining his peak performance levels. He showed improvement against West Ham.
CB: Virgil van Dijk—Van Dijk's most recent home appearance saw him give away a spot-kick, receive a yellow card, and concede four times. The Liverpool skipper will expect higher standards from himself and his squad on Wednesday.
LB: Andy Robertson—Milos Kerkez has featured in the previous three matches for Liverpool and deserves a rest against Sunderland. Robertson will step in having outshone the Hungarian player this campaign.
DM: Ryan Gravenberch—Sunderland's ability to break quickly could mean a hectic night for Gravenberch, who needs to shield the defense more effectively than in recent home encounters.
DM: Alexis Mac Allister—Liverpool urgently require Mac Allister at his finest, with the South American having struggled through an inconsistent season so far. He showed marked improvement over the weekend and will help maintain rhythm against Granit Xhaka's side.
RW: Mohamed Salah—Salah's exclusion from the starting eleven grabbed attention at the weekend, and the Egyptian didn't even feature as a substitute. Nevertheless, with fixtures arriving rapidly, Slot should reinstate the winger in the starting formation.
AM: Florian Wirtz—The £116 million ($153.3 million) acquisition delivered his finest display in Liverpool colors against the Irons. He played a key role in setting up Alexander Isak's goal and impressed throughout at the London Stadium.
LW: Cody Gakpo—A strike and an assist over the weekend means Gakpo has now registered nine goal involvements for Liverpool across all competitions—the highest tally for any club player this season.
ST: Hugo Ekitiké—Isak would have felt relief at scoring his first league goal for Liverpool but will probably be replaced by Ekitiké, as Slot aims to manage both forwards' workload during this intense period.
