BBC pundit Chris Sutton praised the impact of Arne Slot, expressing his surprise over the strength of the Liverpool squad. Liverpool have won nine of their first 10 games in all competition as they head into the October international break.
The Reds are at the top of the Premier League table and won both of their starting Champions League fixture. However, Liverpool have not played a top opponent until now and that will change after the October international break.
The Reds face a very tough fixture after the international break, starting with the Premier League game against London rival Chelsea. They play RB Leipzig in the Champions League afterwards, followed by a big game against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
The new format of the Champions League has increased the number of games that clubs will play during this season. The Champions League fixture adds more complication for Liverpool as they face last season’s Germany’s invincible Bayer Leverkusen in November.
Liverpool will also face last season’s Champions League winners Real Madrid right before they face Manchester City and Newcastle United. Slot needs his team to remain free of any potential injury crisis as they lack enough resting period between games.
Speaking to BBC 5 Live Sport, Sutton pinpointed the strength in the depth of Liverpool’s squad despite their minimum spending. He said:
“You look at Liverpool’s squad and think ‘Blimey’, that’s strong, that’s a deep squad that they’ve got. And they’re not going under the radar really, but I don’t think any of us really thought at the start of the season that Liverpool would be serious title contenders, and just at this moment in time, it’s a pretty impressive start from Slot.”
Apart from the severe injury crisis, Liverpool struggled with complacency which they showed against in the Nottingham Forest loss recently. Slot needs to make sure that the issue is not persistent during this season as they push to fulfil their season’s ambitions.
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The hectic schedule could allow every player to play a significant amount of game time despite the lack of rotation earlier. Liverpool have two players for each position and many of the positions are enjoying very healthy competition. Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo are the best examples as both players have maintained a high level of performance while competing with each other.
