2 weeks ago
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Liverpool goes into Sunday's game against Manchester United looking to end a run of three successive defeats in all competitions.
The last time the Reds had lost three in a row had been around two and a half years earlier, when a Champions League defeat was sandwiched by a couple of league losses.
Liverpool is still the heavy favorite to beat United — considering how feeble Ruben Amorim's team has been for as long as one can remember — but if the unthinkable happens, Slot will undoubtedly come in for some flak.
We know that Alisson and Giovanni Leoni won't be playing against United, but Slot will hope to have all of the rest of his players available.
However, he is sweating on the fitness of Ibrahima Konate, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo after the trio all complained of issues in the last couple of weeks.
Endo and Konate both got hurt in the loss to Chelsea before the international break. Endo was not due to travel on international duty with Japan anyway, as the national team coach planned to rest him for Japan's friendlies with Brazil and Paraguay, so it is not clear how serious his injury is.
Konate, on the other hand, did travel to link up with the France squad but did not play in either game, returning to Merseyside early for further assessments.
Ryan Gravenberch started both of the Netherlands' World Cup qualifiers but was taken off at halftime of the second one, against Finland, after complaining of hamstring tightness.
Gravenberch insisted after the game that his withdrawal was purely precautionary, but if there are any doubts over his state, Slot will not want to risk him.
It seems unlikely, but if all five players are ruled out of the game against United, Slot will be forced into shuffling his pack.
Giorgi Mamardashvili will keep his place in goal, while Conor Bradley and Milos Kerkez should also keep their places in the full-back positions. Bradley didn't have his best game against Chelsea but was excellent for his country as Northern Ireland beat Slovakia, before suspension kept him out of Monday's game against Germany.
Konate's hypothetical absence would see Joe Gomez come in alongside Virgil van Dijk, while the hypothetical absences of Liverpool's two most suitable midfield anchors — Gravenberch and Endo — could see Alexis Mac Allister deployed at the base of midfield.
Florian Wirtz and Dominic Szoboszlai would likely complete the midfield three, with Cody Gakpo, Mohamed Salah and Alexander Isak making up the front three.
Gakpo and Salah had fruitful international breaks, as the former scored three times in two appearances for the Netherlands, and the latter celebrated Egypt qualifying for the World Cup.
But it was a forgettable break for Isak, who looks likely to miss out on next summer's tournament in North America after back-to-back qualifying defeats for Sweden.
Possible Liverpool line-up vs United in nightmare injury scenario: Mamardashvili; Bradley, Gomez, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Mac Allister, Szoboszlai, Wirtz; Salah, Gakpo, Isak
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