Arne Slot is likely to make changes when Liverpool begin the defence of the Carabao Cup.
The Reds are the holders of the silverware after defeating Chelsea 1-0 in a dramatic victory at Wembley last season. That was Jurgen Klopp’s final of eight trophies he won as Anfield boss – and now Slot will be hoping to claim his maiden gong since taking over in the hot seat in June.
The Dutchman has made a seamless transition as head coach, winning five of his six matches in charge to date. Liverpool are second in the Premier League table, just a point behind Manchester City, while they earned a 3-1 victory over AC Milan in their Champions League opener.
Those two competitions are the priority for Slot. But given no club has won the Carabao Cup more than Liverpool, coupled with City’s dominance in the league, supporters will want to see their side go all of the way for an 11th time. Still, those who head to Anfield to watch the Reds face West Ham United on Wednesday will understand that the starting line-up is likely to be freshened up.
The likes of Joe Gomez, Jarell Quansah and Curtis Jones are likely to be handed opportunities, while there could be a full debut for summer signing Federico Chiesa. It will also be intriguing as to whether Darwin Nunez continues to spearhead the front line.
The Uruguay international was handed a maiden start of the campaign in Saturday’s 3-0 win over Bournemouth – and seized his chance. Nunez bagged Liverpool’s third goal with a magnificent finish in the 37th minute, while Slot was highly impressed by the striker’s work-rate throughout. And speaking at his post-match press conference, the Reds chief hinted that Nunez could well continue in his role against West Ham.
He said: “We just have to create our habits day by day on the training ground and in the games to get this consistency. Because while working on your habits, you create consistency. That’s what we try to do every day and he showed today a good game and maybe he can show Wednesday again, but let’s wait and see.”
Klopp used the Carabao Cup to blood several youngsters into the Liverpool first team. However, Stefan Bajcetic, Ben Doak, Kaide Gordon, Owen Beck and Luke Chambers all departed on respective season-long loans in the summer transfer window to garner regular senior experience.
Yet one promising prospect who has regularly been training with Slot’s troops this season is Trey Nyoni. The 17-year-old impressed during pre-season and is highly rated at the club. Signed from Leicester City last summer, Nyoni made his first-team debut in a 3-0 FA Cup win over Southampton last term.
The midfielder featured for the under-21s in a 3-1 triumph against Derby County on Saturday. But he was withdrawn in the 61st minute, which suggests he could indeed play a part against West Ham.
Tyler Morton opened the scoring for the young Reds at the AXA Training Centre. The 21-year-old finds himself somewhat in limbo. Morton spent the previous two campaigns on loan at Blackburn Rovers and Hull City respectively and was a regular for both Championship outfits.
But Morton was kept at Liverpool to provide midfield cover, with Bajcetic loaned to Red Bull Salzburg and Bobby Clark sold to the same club for £10 million. Morton has been omitted from Slot’s squad for all five league games so far, but was on the bench against Milan due to UEFA rules allowing 12 substitutes rather than nine.
The England youth international featured for 77 minutes in the under-21s win over Derby and he’ll be hoping to play against West Ham
