Wataru Endo and Jarell Quansah will make rare starts for Liverpool against Brighton & Hove Albion in the EFL Cup round of 16 at the Amex Stadium on Wednesday.
Liverpool will aim to progress to the EFL Cup quarter-finals when they lock horns with Brighton & Hove Albion in the round of 16 at the Amex Stadium on Wednesday night. And Arne Slot has greeted a positive update on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Conor Bradley is closing in on returning to action after resuming training this week. The young full-back will be in the travelling squad to take on Brighton & Hove Albion. However, Alisson Becker (hamstring), Harvey Elliott (foot), Federico Chiesa (knock), and Diogo Jota (abdominal) remain on the sidelines.
During his pre-match press conference, Slot discussed the possibility of Conor Bradley returning against Brighton & Hove Albion this midweek. In addition, the Dutch tactician spoke about Wataru Endo.
The Liverpool manager said, “Conor is training with us again so he could maybe be in the squad tomorrow. Jota not, Alisson not, Harvey Elliott not, and Federico, I’m not expecting him to be in the squad tomorrow as well.”
“I think Wata is one of the players that might be in the line-up because the season is going to be so long and we will need him during the season. Therefore, once in a while he needs this playing time as well. Every time when we need him – even if it’s for five minutes – he shows up for the team, for his teammates and for himself. Also for that reason he deserves to play tomorrow.”
Wataru Endo will make a rare start for Liverpool on Wednesday, with the away side lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation against Brighton & Hove Albion. The Japanese international will pair up with Alexis Mac Allister in the double pivot, with Dominik Szoboszlai reprising the No. 10 role.
With Jota still unavailable, Darwin Nunez will lead the line for the Reds against Brighton, with Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo being the two wide attackers. Meanwhile, Bradley will unlikely feature from the get-go, with Joe Gomez starting as the right-back. The Englishman will join Jarell Quansah, Virgil van Dijk, and Kostas Tsimikas in the backline. Finally, Caoimhin Kelleher will take his spot between the sticks.
Predicted Liverpool XI: Kelleher; Gomez, Quansah, van Dijk, Tsimikas; Endo, Mac Allister; Salah, Szoboszlai, Gakpo; Nunez