He fondly remembers winning the trophy in 2022 and more importantly empowering the entire club to continue competing on three fronts for the remainder of the season. Liverpool look set to spend Christmas at the top of the Premier League with a win against the Gunners on Saturday, the culmination of their run at Anfield until December 25, but the players will likely determine how strong Klopp is willing to be. Who won’t be there on Wednesday.Caoimhin Kelleher is expected to replace Alisson Becker in goal. The Irish kept a clean sheet in their successful 2021/22 campaign, including a penalty shoot-out win against Chelsea in the final. With Joel Matip out for the season, Klopp’s plans for his centre-back partnership have become a little more complicated. Jarell Quansah has had an excellent season so far and it would be no surprise to see the England Under-21 international named in defence. But the question is whether he will join captain Virgil van Dijk or Joe Gomez. You will have an advantage.
A position he would like to play regularly.Of course, there is also the option of starting Gomez at right-back and, with Alexis McAllister injured, moving Trent Alexander-Arnold into a more traditional midfield role. Arsenal will need Wataru Endo if injury prevents Argentina from winning the World Cup. This may still be an option for the administrator. Another problem is the over-reliance on left-back Kostas Tsimikas.
The Greece international has been in good form of late, but Andy Robertson is still showing no signs of returning from shoulder surgery in October and Tsimikas’ injury would be a major setback. Luke Chambers could come in, but it’s difficult for a manager to find the right balance. This looks like a good opportunity to start Harvey Elliott and Curtis Jones in the No. 6 role of the night. Ryan Gravenberg will miss the United game through injury, while Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Veicetic remain on the bench.Seven first-team players are currently missing and the list is growing, looking tough at the wrong time of the season. With Diogo Jota out with a hamstring problem, Klopp still has four places in the top three.
Darwin Núñez, who is currently without a goal in 10 games, could bring momentum and pace to the game, but Klopp is likely to go with the option of Cody Gakpo. Without real replacements at the moment, Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz are likely to leave. It would be a big surprise if Kaide Gordon and Ben Doak were selected instead. This is one of the most difficult team selections of the season.
Jurgen Klopp faces several selection dilemmas for Liverpool’s trip to West Ham United on Wednesday night as he oversees a growing injury list.The Carabao Cup is usually a time of change and change, but with other Premier League heavy weights already eliminated, it could be a two-way battle for a place in the semi-finals of the competition. I think it will be a lot of fun at Wembley.
With the Europa League restarting next year and the FA Cup at Arsenal next month, title-chasing Liverpool could receive a similar boost later in the season.
