Arne Slot might be forced into Newcastle gamble after Liverpool injury blow

Arne Slot might be forced into Newcastle gamble after Liverpool injury blow

The ECHO's Liverpool writers assess what Arne Slot might do at right-back for Monday's trip to Newcastle United

Dominik Szoboszlai started for Liverpool against Bournemouth (Image: Getty Images)

Liverpool have something of a dilemma at right-back for Monday night's trip to Newcastle United. Jeremie Frimpong is set to be sidelined until the other side of the international break and Conor Bradley is still on the comeback trail himself having only returned to training himself this week.

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Joe Gomez has made one Premier League appearance since December, which came as a substitute in Friday night's 4-2 win over Bournemouth, while Wataru Endo has also featured in the position.

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It leaves Slot with a genuine selection dilemma ahead of what is expected to be white-hot atmosphere at St James' Park on Monday evening.

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Here, the ECHO's dedicated Liverpool writers weigh up the merits of those who might start on Tyneside.

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Paul Gorst - Dominik Szoboszlai

How loudly the alarm bells are ringing after speed merchant Jeremie Frimpong suffered a hamstring injury so early into his Premier League debut depends on your general outlook, one supposes.

But after seeing the Netherlands withdrawn on Friday against Bournemouth on the advice of the club's medical staff, it must be slightly concerning for Arne Slot as he gets set for a spell on the sidelines now.

Who plays in his absence then? Well Conor Bradley is at least back training and has been called into the Northern Ireland squad as a result.

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I'm not so sure I'd risk him for this one on Monday though. It's going to be intense and lively at St James' Park and with the likes of Harvey Barnes and Anthony Gordon running at the Reds' defence, everyone needs to be 100% to withstand the Magpies on the night.

In somewhat of a left-field experiment, I am going to plump for Dominik Szoboszlai there. Liverpool will need to keep the ball and quieten the crowd on Tyneside and the Hungary captain, while not a natural full-back by any stretch, has operated there at times during pre-season.

His quality in possession also gives Liverpool an additional attacking weapon from deep that Frimpong may not necessarily provide had he been fit. With Newcastle's midfield a particularly combative one, Liverpool need all the power they can muster and Szoboszlai's tireless running and energy could be useful on Monday night. Bradley can wait in the wings for half an hour or so.

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Ian Doyle - Conor Bradley

Defensive selection headaches are nothing new for Liverpool at Newcastle United in recent years. Two years ago, Jarell Quansah was pressed into his senior debut late on after Virgil van Dijk had earlier been sent off, while last season Quansah started at right-back with Joe Gomez needed at centre-back, Trent Alexander-Arnold not quite fit enough for 90 minutes and Conor Bradley injured.

This time around, with Alexander-Arnold and Quansah - who also started the League Cup final against Newcastle at right-back - both gone, it's Jeremie Frimpong out and neither Bradley nor Gomez at 100%.

Curtis Jones featured at right-back earlier in the year for a short period, while Dominik Szoboszlai did a job at times during pre-season. But neither is a defender by trade.

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Starting Gomez would be a big shout given he has played barely 20 minutes of Premier League football since December.

The answer, then, would be to mix-and-match. Bradley hasn't been out for an extended period and did feature in the first four games of pre-season, so should be reasonably sharp.

He can come through the first hour and then perhaps allow Gomez a run-out in the 30 minutes. Arne Slot has already shown he can be quite creative in his selections, and this could be another opportunity to show that.

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Theo Squires - Dominik Szoboszlai

If there was one position Liverpool really could have done without another injury this early in the season, it was at right-back. With Jeremie Frimpong now ruled out until after the international break, Arne Slot faces an unwanted headache.

Conor Bradley might have returned to training at the back-end of last week but he hasn’t played since the Reds’ tour of Asia. It really would be a big ask to throw him straight back into the starting XI against Newcastle United. Given his injury record, they have to manage the young full-back carefully.

Hopefully the Northern Irishman can instead make his return from the bench against St. James’ Park, with a first start following next weekend against Arsenal. Liverpool will be without Frimpong for more than one game, after all.

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Joe Gomez returned from a minor Achilles injury to make his own comeback against Bournemouth in the Reds’ season opener, but that is only his second competitive outing of the calendar year. Slot has since revealed the defender was not able to train three days in a row.

That would suggest he too needs to be managed carefully, though he at least has more training sessions under his belt than Bradley.

If he’s deemed fit enough to start, he gets the nod at St. James’ Park. But if not, Slot will have to think outside of the box.

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Up against Harvey Barnes, and with Anthony Gordon likely to drift wide too, I would not want to see Wataru Endo at right-back. So that leaves Curtis Jones or Dominik Szoboszlai.

The Hungarian was solid enough there in pre-season and you can rely on him to give his absolute all. And at least starting him at right-back counters the dilemma of who to drop from midfield in order to start the returning Ryan Gravenberch.

Get through an hour with Szoboszlai at right-back before moving him into midfield and bringing on Gomez or Bradley to hopefully see the game out. It’s a gamble but needs must.

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