Arne Slot could be dealt a selection nightmare if one particular thing happens during tonight’s Premier League fixture against Leicester City at Anfield.
Slot, 46, will see his side take on Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Foxes this evening. The Reds come into the fixture top of the Premier League and 36-team Champions League group phase.
The match against the East Midlands outfit is the first of a hectic Christmas schedule for the league leaders.
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In just two days, the 19-time Premier League winners will travel to east London, where they will take on West Ham United at the London Stadium on Sunday.
However, they could be without up to five players for the trip if a certain thing happens during tonight’s clash with Van Nistelrooy’s side.
Five Liverpool stars are among a group of 43 Premier League players who will be suspended for one match if they receive a yellow card before the end of gameweek 19.
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The players at risk are Darwin Nunez, Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch, Cody Gakpo and Ibrahima Konate - who is not included in the Reds’ 20-man matchday squad after sustaining a knee injury during Liverpool’s 2-0 win against Real Madrid in November.
As for the others, Nunez, Gakpo, and Gravenberch are all in Slot’s starting XI for the home match this evening.
While Szoboszlai has been named as a substitute. Liverpool fans will be hoping all four of the players included in the matchday squad can stay on the right side of the footballing laws this evening.
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If any of the players mentioned do receive a booking, they will miss the trip to West Ham.
Tallies are cleared at the end of gameweek 19, but players who receive ten yellow cards by gameweek 32, will be suspended for a further two matches.
Arguably, the biggest miss would be if Gravenberch were to receive a booking. The Dutchman is a crucial part of the Liverpool set-up and has made the ‘number six’ position his own since Slot arrived at the club following the departure of Jurgen Klopp at the end of the 2023/24 season.
The potential replacement who would likely fill in for the former Bayern Munich man would be Wataru Endo, who has made just six Premier League appearances this term.
Topics: Liverpool, Premier League, Arne Slot, Ruud Van Nistelrooy, West Ham United
Luke Alfred Davies