Huge fitness boost for Liverpool after Slot’s Alisson announcement gives them welcome relief ahead of Girona clash.
Huge fitness boost for Liverpool as slot confirms keeper Alisson could feature against Girona.
Since suffering a hamstring injury against Crystal Palace at the beginning of October, the Brazilian goalie has not played. Even though it would be challenging to improve on his deputy Caoimhín Kelleher’s performances over the previous two months, the Liverpool head coach suggested that he could start after he finished training on Monday morning and flew to Spain with the team. He said that the difference he makes “speaks for itself.” Slot added that despite Liverpool’s five-point lead in their attempt to advance straight to the round of 16 in the redesigned Champions League, he would select as strong a team as possible.
Asked if Alisson was available to begin the game, Slot replied: “Yes, he is. If you can play with Alisson that has been so outstanding for so many years for Liverpool and for the Brazil national team, it speaks for itself really. It is nice to have him back and available. But if you look at how his replacement did, it is not easy to do better. Caoimhín did so well so we can say that we have two great goalkeepers that can both do the job for us. For so many years [Alisson] has been so outstanding, so we are expecting him to do the same for the next few months.”
Despite Alisson’s injury, Liverpool have gone more than seven hours without conceding in the Champions League and are closing in on a club record in Europe. “Maybe that is to do with the [competition] setup, but it is definitely to do with the quality,” Slot said. “The goalkeepers have done so well: Caoimhín and also Alisson, who played two games. But it is not just the last line and the goalkeepers.”
“Everyone is fit, there is no need to rotate because we skipped Saturday. We will start like we have all the other games, with a very good team tomorrow,” Slot said. “Of course it seems to be good to finish in the top eight but we can [only] judge at the end of the season. We are trying to finish as high as possible to skip the next round. If that means playing starters always and then getting a difficult draw maybe we will think about it differently next season. We will have to see where it leaves us. But we want to stay in the top eight so we think we still need a win and the first chance is tomorrow night.
“It could be [an advantage in the league to avoid two extra European games], but if we end up in the top eight I assume they will as well,” Slot said. “Arsenal 95%. City maybe have to do a bit more but they can win three in a row so they will be top eight. You never know if it is an advantage.