Alexander Isak to create Liverpool dilemma as Arne Slot faces 5 more questions

Liverpool returns to Premier League action later this week, and Arne Slot has some big calls to make. After matches with Aston Villa and Real Madrid saw his side improve, the game with Manchester City showed some familiar issues.

Next up, though, is an easier-looking run, at least on paper. Liverpool will still have to prove itself as having turned a corner defensively in terms of long balls and launched throw-ins, but games with Nottingham Forest, Leeds United and Wolves, for instance, should be ones in which the Reds are aiming for maximum points.

Arsenal is currently eight points ahead and Manchester City seven, but as we enter a crucial period, what decisions does Slot have to get right? Liverpool.com has taken a look.

Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike dilemma

For France this week, Hugo Ekitike has played a couple of different roles. While the French media was left unimpressed with him as a number nine, he did much better — and scored a great goal after combining with Kylian Mbappe — when coming from the left.

It is a dilemma that Slot will have to solve in the coming weeks, with Ekitike in better form than Isak, but the latter needing minutes to get back up to speed. Liverpool has to get the balance of minutes for both players right.

In the first game back, Isak is not likely to be able to play a full 90 minutes anyway. After that, though, Liverpool needs to find a way of getting the most out of the pair — sometimes simultaneously.

Florian Wirtz position

Against Real Madrid, Florian Wirtz looked excellent off the left flank. Against Manchester City, it didn't quite work as well, though Liverpool as a whole looked jaded on that occasion.

When Nottingham Forest comes to town on Saturday, Slot could pick Wirtz in that role again, or he could revert back to the number 10 plan. (He could even leave him out of the starting XI entirely, but at some point, he needs to be integrated).

Wirtz isn't going to start every single game in the next run, but it feels like a crucial period for how his season — and Liverpool's more generally — will be viewed.

Rack up a few wins here and the Reds will be right back on track again. Likewise, Wirtz could do with scoring and assisting a few goals against lesser opponents having struggled to make his mark so far.

Mohamed Salah question

There should not be any doubt about Mohamed Salah's position in the Liverpool team between now and when he goes away for AFCON, though he won't start every game either.

There is still a role for the Egyptian to play before then (and after it, obviously). Talk of taking him out of the firing line seems unlikely; if nothing else, there are no glaring alternatives.

Salah, like Wirtz, should be looking forward to playing teams where he should be able to build some momentum. He is an answer for Liverpool moving forward, rather than a piece of the puzzle to question.

Andy Robertson and Milos Kerkez battle

In the Liverpool defense, with Jeremie Frimpong still absent and Slot having limited choice at center-back, the main question is at left-back, where Milos Kerkez and Andy Robertson are the two options.

Robertson holds the jersey as things stand, but Kerkez will get chances. In the next two games, perhaps the former will get Nottingham Forest and the latter PSV.

All over the field (goalkeeper aside, where Alisson Becker is set to return), there will be rotation over the next few weeks. In the case of the returning Isak and the still-integrating Wirtz, though, those calls will be especially important.

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