Hugo Ekitike and Wataru Endo will return to the Liverpool starting lineup when they host Qarabag FK at Anfield on Wednesday.
Liverpool will aim to secure a spot in the top eight of the UEFA Champions League when they welcome Qarabag FK to Anfield on Wednesday night. Arne Slot has a new injury concern to worry about ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Joe Gomez is the latest absentee after sustaining a hip injury in the Premier League game against Bournemouth this past weekend. The English international has joined Giovanni Leoni (knee), Conor Bradley (knee), and Alexander Isak (leg) in the treatment room.
Additionally, Ibrahima Konate is still unavailable due to personal reasons, meaning Slot must pick a makeshift centre-back for Wednesday’s UEFA Champions League clash with Qarabag. However, Federico Chiesa is in contention to feature after resuming training this week. Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Slot provided fitness updates on Gomez, Endo, and Hugo Ekitike.
The Liverpool manager said, “I can confirm that he [Gomez] is not available for tomorrow evening. He [Endo] has been out with an injury for quite a long time, he had to play against Bournemouth [for] quite a long time and now, tomorrow, there’s a game coming up and then three days later another game [is] coming up.”
“As I also said, that’s not the only way I decide on my lineup – tactics are involved in that as well. It is for sure at centre-back tomorrow there will not be a centre-back, I can only play a midfielder there because there are no [other] centre-backs available.”
“He [Ekitike] was out with an injury for two weeks and then he had to play quite a lot of games. And with only one No.9 available for the upcoming months, it made sense to me to manage his load as well.”
Alisson Becker is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Liverpool lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him against Qarabag FK on Wednesday. The backline will feature Jeremie Frimpong, Wataru Endo, Virgil van Dijk, and Milos Kerkez.
As for the midfield unit, Dominik Szoboszlai will pair up with Ryan Gravenberch in the double pivot, with Alexis Mac Allister reprising the no. 10 role. Finally, Hugo Ekitike will lead the line for the home side against Qarabag, with Mohamed Salah and Florian Wirtz completing the numbers in the offensive third. So, Curtis Jones, Federico Chiesa, and Cody Gakpo will be backup options on the bench.
Predicted Liverpool XI: Alisson; Frimpong, Endo, van Dijk, Kerkez; Szoboszlai, Gravenberch; Salah, Mac Allister, Wirtz; Ekitike
