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Alexander Isak had a watching brief as Liverpool took on Burnley at Turf Moor. Given he has missed almost the whole of the summer, it makes sense that he was left at home — though for a while, that decision looked like it might backfire.
Liverpool toiled, to say the least, against Scott Parker's side. Only when Hannibal Mejbri handled the ball inside the penalty area as Jeremie Frimpong tried to throw a cross into the box was the deadlock broken; Mohamed Salah confidently stepped up and netted the winner.
Had Liverpool not found a way to the three points, there might have been a legitimate question to ask about whether Isak should have been present to get thrown on.
In the end, the Reds managed the best of both worlds: Salah's goal earned the three points for Liverpool, while Isak was able to do a training session at the AXA which should better prepare him for minutes against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday.
In Isak's absence, Federico Chiesa — the hero against Bournemouth — was put on first. He didn't make a big impact, before Rio Ngumoha, in his handful of minutes, looked more composed, though he remains only 17.
Liverpool really needed that extra bit of quality in the final third, though. There were flashes and moments from Florian Wirtz and Cody Gakpo, but for a long time, it had the feeling of being 'one of those days'.
In some ways, this game was reminiscent of the trip to Southampton last season — another game where Salah was needed to come up with some late heroics.
Though Liverpool never fell behind here and only required one goal to earn the three points, it was a similarly testing match where anything but a win would have been frustrating.
How you view the victory — and how convinced you choose to be by it — depends essentially on two things. Do you see it as a win where Liverpool showed the mentality of champions, or a worrying performance with a lucky escape?
That the $169 million (£125 million) striker Isak is still to be added into the mix perhaps tips the balance in the favor of this being a positive.
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Without the Swede, though — and Liverpool will have to deal with one or two injuries and absences as the campaign progresses — Slot's bench looked lacking in options.
Frimpong is viewed as someone who can play in the forward line, and Chiesa and Ngumoha have each scored winning goals already this season, so they can be genuine options. One more attacker, however, would have offered extra depth.
But perhaps that is a conundrum for another day. Even on Wednesday, the teamsheet should be bolstered by the arrival of Isak (if he doesn't appear then, he can be expected to at some point this week).
For now, Liverpool is showing signs of a prime Manchester United. This summer, it spent big to sign Isak from a potential rival; in its first four fixtures of the new season, it somehow just keeps finding a way to win.
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