Soccer Football - Carabao Cup - Third Round - Liverpool v Southampton - Anfield, Liverpool, Britain - September 23, 2025 Liverpool's Federico Chiesa in action with Southampton's Joshua Quarshie REUTERS/Phil Noble EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO USE WITH UNAUTHORIZED AUDIO, VIDEO, DATA, FIXTURE LISTS, CLUB/LEAGUE LOGOS OR 'LIVE' SERVICES. ONLINE IN-MATCH USE LIMITED TO 120 IMAGES, NO VIDEO EMULATION. NO USE IN BETTING, GAMES OR SINGLE CLUB/LEAGUE/PLAYER PUBLICATIONS. PLEASE CONTACT YOUR ACCOUNT REPRESENTATIVE FOR FURTHER DETAILS..
Liverpool have made a strong start to their Premier League title defence and will be determined to extend their dominance across all competitions this season.
The Reds are targeting back-to-back league titles, but also have their eyes on silverware in the Carabao Cup, FA Cup and Champions League.
Arne Slot has drawn widespread praise after his debut season success, and expectations are now higher than ever.
For many supporters, the dream is not just domestic glory but European dominance.
Liverpool’s Champions League campaign ended in disappointment last season when they were knocked out in the round of 16 by winners Paris Saint-Germain.
But a ruthless summer of recruitment, which brought in some of Europe’s finest talents, including Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak, has raised hopes of a serious challenge for club football’s biggest honour.
That level of talent added forced Slot into tough decisions when naming his Champions League squad for the opening stages of the competition.
The most controversial call was leaving out fan favourite Federico Chiesa, who reportedly missed out due to UEFA’s homegrown quota rules.
However, events this week may have opened the door for his return.
During Liverpool’s Carabao Cup victory over Southampton, promising young defender Giovanni Leoni suffered a serious ACL injury, ruling him out for the rest of the season.
Leoni had impressed on debut but now faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines, and crucially, his absence creates a potential vacancy in the 25-man Champions League squad.
Addressing the situation in his pre-match press conference, Slot confirmed the club is exploring the possibility of adding Chiesa:
“Yeah, we’ve looked into this,”
“I cannot tell you exactly where that process is at the moment. That is not something I do myself, there are other people doing this.”
“But if I’m informed correctly, if a player has a longer than two-month injury, you are able to replace him. That’s what they’ve told me and now we have to see if it’s true or not, but other people are looking into that.”
Should Chiesa get the Champions League spot?
There is little doubt that the Anfield faithful would welcome Chiesa’s inclusion.
The Italian has struggled for minutes under Slot, with Cody Gakpo and youngster Rio Ngumhoa often preferred on the left flank, but his quality is unquestionable.
Over 19 appearances for Liverpool, Chiesa – hailed as “exceptional” by Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp – has contributed three goals and four assists, averaging a goal involvement every 86 minutes.
His performance against Southampton, where he set up both goals, only intensified calls for him to feature more regularly, especially in the upcoming Premier League clash against Crystal Palace.
While he was originally left out of Liverpool’s ‘List A’, UEFA regulations does allow a long-term injury replacement, making him eligible to take Leoni’s place.
Given his European experience and game-changing abilities, including Chiesa feels less like a risk and more like an obvious solution.
Liverpool will head to Istanbul for their Champions League group stage clash with Galatasaray on Tuesday, 30th September.
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