Slot hopes to keep the injury-prone Liverpool star fit

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot hopes that Diogo Jota will stay fit and involved for the rest of the season. Jota played for 64 minutes against Wolves before Slot brought Darwin Nunez to replace the Portuguese attacker, managing his time.

The 28-year-old has enjoyed a reputation as a prolific finisher and as threatening in front of goal as Mohamed Salah. Nevertheless, Jota’s career at Liverpool has suffered immensely from recurring injuries since he joined the club from Wolves in 2020.

Slot has played Nunez and Luis Diaz as the number nine at Liverpool in the absence of the Portuguese international. The number nine position has faced scrutiny from the fanbase and the media for lacking a consistently reliable goalscoring performer.

Speaking in the pre-match press conference (via Liverpoolfc.com), Slot revealed his hope to have Jota available for Liverpool for the rest of the season. He said:

“A role like many others. He’d done so well before his injury and, I think I’ve said it during the weekend, I couldn’t even remember when his last start was for us in the Premier League. I think we’ve missed him for three or four months because it was Chelsea in October, that’s a long way back, so we’ve missed the No.9 that played in the first seven or eight games every single one for almost three or four months. Now he is back. He played 60 [minutes on Sunday] and with a decent amount of games we play now, you don’t expect him to play 90, 90, 90 in the upcoming three, but he will be involved in hopefully all three and hopefully with a lot of minutes as well.”

Jota has missed 16 games in all competitions this season for Liverpool, highlighting his unreliability as a long-term number nine. His unreliability combined with Nunez’s unreliability in front of the goal is a recurring issue for Liverpool that needs addressing.

Furthermore, the Portuguese struggle to influence the game in the overall play, failing to link up regularly with teammates. There are many occasions when Jota disappears from the game, forcing his teammates to work harder to control the game.

Liverpool faced that situation against Wolves during the start of the second half, failing to control the game. As the midfield showed signs of fatigue, Jota and Diaz failed to help them by providing an outlet and stretching the game.

More Liverpool News:

• Match Preview: Aston Villa vs Liverpool
• Endo spills Slot’s secret tactic to crush Wolves’ threat
• Slot: Late Everton goal Led to 2nd-half Liverpool struggles vs Wolves

Liverpool needs Jota to perform at the optimal level as one of the lethal goal-scorers at the club. With 13 Premier League games still left, a seven-point lead over Arsenal is still not enough in such a competitive league.