Liverpool have suffered an injury setback just as they enter a packed fixture schedule following their Carabao Cup victory over Tottenham Hotspur.
Arne Slot continued his impressive start as Liverpool manager on Thursday night, leading his team to a dominant 4-0 win over Tottenham in the Carabao Cup semi-final at Anfield, securing a spot in his first cup final with the club.
As a result of this victory, Liverpool’s Premier League clash against Aston Villa has been rescheduled from March 15 to February 19, increasing their fixture load to six matches in just 17 days.
With games every three days, Slot will need to rotate his squad carefully, but he has confirmed that he will be without a key player during this demanding period.
Following the Carabao Cup win, the Dutch manager provided an update on his squad’s fitness, revealing that Tyler Morton will be sidelined for the foreseeable future due to injury.
“He competes with our other midfielders and always gives his all,” Slot said. “Tyler Morton is out with an injury for a while, so he was perhaps our sixth-choice midfielder, and now James [McConnell] is taking that role.”
Morton, who has made two starts for Liverpool this season, was expected to feature in Sunday’s FA Cup match against Plymouth Argyle but will now miss out due to his injury. Slot added that the midfielder is likely to be out for “four weeks or longer.”
However, there was some positive news for Liverpool fans, as Slot confirmed that Trent Alexander-Arnold’s recovery is progressing well. While the right-back will miss Sunday’s game, he could return in time for next week’s Merseyside derby against Everton.
“No, I don’t think so yet. That’s going to be too soon for him,” Slot said when asked about Alexander-Arnold’s availability for Plymouth.
“It’s hard to say about the derby. As I mentioned before, his injury won’t keep him out for months or even many weeks, but with the game just three days after Plymouth, we’ll have to wait and see if he’s ready.
“We also have to consider the long term—we don’t want to take any risks with so many matches coming up. But if he’s fit, of course, we will use him.”
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