Liverpool will make the trip to the capital this weekend for their Premier League clash with Brentford, after securing their first win in four in the Champions League.
The Reds earned an unwanted statistic when they lost to Manchester United last weekend, recording four consecutive defeats for the first time since Brendan Rodgers was in charge back in November 2014.
A resilient statement was needed when Arne Slot took his team to Germany for their Champions League fixture against Eintracht Frankfurt, and they certainly delivered, with a 5-1 victory over their hosts.
However, with Arsenal taking an early lead in the Premier League title race, it will be vital for Liverpool to get back on track if they are to have any chance of retaining their champion status.
Liverpool have won their last five fixtures against the Bees, so fortune favours them on Saturday evening, but current form will hardly fill supporters with confidence, and nothing short of a win will be acceptable.
Despite a positive result in Frankfurt, the Reds suffered several injury setbacks during the clash and will return to Premier League action without key players.
New striker Alexander Isak and talented full-back Jeremie Frimpong both had to be withdrawn with injuries during the Champions League group stage game.
Not only that, Liverpool’s number one, Alisson Becker, has been unavailable for selection since suffering an injury against Galatasaray at the beginning of the month.
The Liverpool boss gave further insight into all three injuries during his pre-match press conference this morning:
“Jeremie [Frimpong] is not in a good place. What I mean is he’s not going to play today, tomorrow or next week. Hamstring injury, so that’s going to take a while.”
“Alex [Isak], not too bad, question mark for the weekend.”
“Alisson is not in the squad tomorrow. That’s also going to take a little bit longer.”
Will Ryan Gravenberch start against Brentford?
It is certainly not ideal for Slot that he has so many influential players potentially unavailable for selection in the immediate future, but Liverpool should still have enough quality to trouble Brentford on Saturday night.
Hugo Ekitike scored again in Frankfurt and now has the opportunity to cement himself as the starting striker if Isak is unavailable.
He will be expected to continue working hard to make decisive goal contributions.
Conor Bradley is also fighting for his place in the starting eleven after mixed reviews on his performances so far this season.
Like Ekitike, he will likely be determined to impress his manager while Frimpong remains sidelined.
Elsewhere, Mohamed Salah will be eager to return to the starting line-up after a difficult start to the season for the Egyptian winger, and it would be no surprise to see him back in from the start this weekend.
Similarly to Isak, Slot has revealed that Ryan Gravenberch is another player with a question mark over his availability for the trip to the Community Stadium.
The talented Dutchman has been missing from Liverpool’s midfield since being withdrawn in the second half of the defeat to Manchester United last weekend.
His dynamic presence in midfield would certainly be missed against Brentford and could prove crucial in containing former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson in the midfield battle.
With all that considered, it will be interesting to see who makes the cut in the starting eleven and whether Slot sticks with the formation that worked so well against Frankfurt or opts for a completely different approach.
About the Author
