Arne Slot May Unleash New Liverpool Partnership – as ‘Rolls Royce’ Could Be Handed Debut

Liverpool have just 11 senior players available for their Champions League encounter with PSV Eindhoven.

Many Liverpool supporters will be pleased with Arne Slot’s choice to rest a significant number of key players.

Virgil van Dijk, Mo Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Alexis Mac Allister have played a crucial role in securing the Reds’ place in the last 16 of the Champions League.

With seven victories from seven matches, Liverpool approach their final group-stage fixture against PSV Eindhoven having already guaranteed at least second place and requiring only a point to finish top.

Slot has named a significantly weakened squad for the trip to his homeland, the Netherlands. A total of 21 players have made the journey, but only 11 can genuinely be considered senior players.

Centre-back Decision

Surprisingly, only one center-back, Jarell Quansah, is involved in the upcoming match. Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate have stayed behind in Merseyside, while Joe Gomez, despite participating in training, is not yet ready to return to action due to a hamstring injury.

As a result, head coach Arne Slot will need to unleash a new partnership in central defence. The question of who will play alongside Quansah is an intriguing one. Slot might consider a makeshift solution, potentially deploying Andy Robertson in that role.

Robertson, the longest-serving player in the squad, is also likely to captain the team if he starts. Given his experience, he may be called upon to fill the gap, with Kostas Tsimikas potentially taking over on the left side of the defence.

Another option could be Wataru Endo, who began his career as a center-back before transitioning to midfield. Endo has already played in defence on several occasions this season, including during the 1-0 Carabao Cup semi-final first-leg loss to Tottenham, when Quansah was forced off, and in the 4-0 FA Cup victory over Accrington.

However, with Slot also facing a shortage of experienced midfielders—Tyler Morton and Harvey Elliott are the only other options—Endo may be needed to remain in his usual midfield role.

There is also the possibility of Slot handing a debut to a young player. Amara Nallo, who has traveled with the squad to PSV, could be next in line. The 18-year-old has been on the bench twice this season and has frequently captained Liverpool’s under-19 team in the UEFA Youth League.

Despite still being eligible for under-18 football, Nallo has been a consistent presence for the under-21s since joining Liverpool from West Ham in the summer of 2023. During his time at West Ham, he was highly regarded, with under-16s coach Carlton Cole describing him as a “Rolls Royce” of a player.

Arne Slot’s Plan

Slot certainly has decisions to consider. The Anfield boss has emphasised his desire to win the match, while also giving several squad players who have had limited involvement this season the opportunity to play the full 90 minutes.

Slot said at his pre-match press conference: “A very wise man once said to me, ‘I have never seen anything good coming from losing a football game’ so we are not going into the game tomorrow trying to lose the game, we will do everything we can to try to win it, of course.

“The second thing is that because we mainly start with 13 or 14 players that have shared most of the playing time, the ones that haven’t played a lot it’s very useful for them to have 90 minutes.

“Because if we do get into injury problems, these players will have a bit of game rhythm then as well. So, it’s a choice that we’ve made for the long term. It doesn’t tell you anything about the results in the short term but definitely it helps us for the long term.”

That might prevent Nallo from making his debut, but it remains a possibility.

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