During the first few weeks of the season, Arne Slot didn’t do much to change up his Liverpool lineup. In fact, he was asked about rotation and minute management multiple times and had to defend his lack of need to do so at Feyenoord.
A few months into his reign, there has undoubtedly been more switching around in midweek action. Champions League and Carabao Cup games give fringe first-team players a chance to play, and one or two of those players, most notably Curtis Jones, who had been spectators at the beginning of the season are now much more frequently in the starting lineup for games.
However, Slot may have hinted—and more crucially, was shown the reasons—that his club may now undergo the most significant early switch-up in the upcoming weeks in an attractive, if otherwise likely ordinary, fourth-round League Cup encounter against Brighton and Hove Albion.
It was evident in minutes, performance levels, impact, and, to be honest, a repetition of what has possibly been demonstrated for a number of games.
And it’s all down the left wing, where Luis Diaz and Andy Robertson have been the preferred starts up until now. Now, both of those might be altered.
It appears to be a more regular and predictable change in attack. Even though Diaz scored the goal that ultimately ended the match by smashing it in at the near post with five minutes remaining, Cody Gakpo had already long since eclipsed both his recent play and his performance.
The Dutchman was Liverpool’s outlet in a strikerless formation, with Dominik Szoboszlai ostensibly up front but…not really. He added two explosive goals to his display of industry, adventure, and pace to put the ball in the net. The first, a traditional cut-in-and-rocket, ended up in Jason Steele’s goal’s far top corner. In the second, he was more focused and unrelenting, rifling in close post with players to his right vying for the ball. However, Gakpo was in the mood to score again after he had just set up a three-on-one opportunity that was denied.
Naturally, Diaz’s late strike and work rate serve as a reminder of his worth. And he personally had a fantastic start to the season. More than simply three starting-caliber forwards who push each other to be in form and favor are what Liverpool, or any team, needs to compete on all fronts.Gakpo is undroppable at the moment, and maximizing these bursts of form is crucial for a forward who hasn’t yet demonstrated long-term consistency. He might anticipate playing Brighton again this weekend in a Premier League match at Anfield if his goals didn’t indicate it. In these partial rotation matches, Slot has a tendency to bench players who could be in the starting lineup the following time out, so Diaz’s 90 minutes and the Dutchman’s 20 fewer minutes are a sign of things to come, even though his manager maintains that he is already a starting candidate.
After the game, he stated, “In my opinion, he is a consistent starter—not in every game, but consistently.” And Lucho Diaz is a fierce rival of his. It’s common to have two excellent players in most positions when playing for a team like Liverpool.
“I think Cody has been a good player for Liverpool for a long time; he scored a lot of goals not only this season but also in the second half of last season.” But starting two out of nine in the league speaks for itself, and Gakpo will be hoping that this will change.
At left-back, he faces a more challenging opponent.Robertson captained Liverpool that evening, but as Bukayo Saka so eloquently showed, his play has been erratic lately, as he has struggled against pace in multiple games. Brajan Gruda took his turn tonight, followed by Simon Adingra. Although he did stop a goal late on with a far-post clearance, both players outpaced the Scot in terms of movement and quickness.
Few will insist that Robertson be fired without fanfare, but there is growing evidence that Kostas Tsimikas may be in a better position. One might also argue that Joe Gomez, who plays center back here but was excellent in that role the previous season, could be a good choice because he provides the right-footed option against attackers who want to run inside.
With Liverpool still in the cup with this win, they will have more opportunities to rotate and, of course, pursue a trophy.
After an opening ten minutes that seemed to be an exercise in which the stand-in goalkeeper could take the greatest risk to maintain possession and send opposing forwards the wrong way with tight turns and delicate touches, Gakpo’s goals and an exciting final ten minutes that saw Simon Adingra, Diaz, and Tariq Lamptey all celebrate followed.
Although Viteszlav Jaros’ incredible fingertip stop onto the post from Adingra created a memorable moment, the Reds’ third-choice goalkeeper’s strong full debut won’t put him ahead of Caoimhin Kelleher, much less into Slot’s starting lineup. However, it can be a different story at left wing and left back.s