Arne Slot believes Liverpool’s squad depth and lack of injuries meant there was no need to make signings in the January transfer window.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, who will miss Thursday’s Carabao Cup semi-final second leg against Tottenham at Anfield due to a minor thigh problem, is the only player currently unavailable.
“We have a very good squad and if you look at the league table, the players have shown that the trust we had in them was correct,” Slot said.
“Apart from Trent for a few days, we don’t have any injuries and they are all available. So there was not a reason to add something to the team unless there was a chance in the market. For now, we’re happy with the team we have.”
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Federico Chiesa and Joe Gomez didn’t make the bench at Bournemouth on Saturday and Slot insists Premier League managers should be able to name more than 20 players in a matchday squad.
“It’s one of the only things I don’t understand here in England,” Slot added.
“When we play Champions League, we can take 23 players to the game. In this country we play the most games which means you need a big squad but we can only take 20 players to a game.
“For a manager, picking the first XI is difficult, but to tell someone he’s not even in the squad is even harder. I don’t understand why we don’t go to 23 in this country.
“It’s not about that game as nine substitutes are more than enough, it’s about keeping the dressing room going. To leave someone out who works so hard on a daily basis and wants to be involved….. not even taking him to the game is the hardest decision for me to make.”
Conor Bradley is set to deputise for Alexander-Arnold at right-back as Liverpool look to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg.
The Northern Ireland international endured a difficult night against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League last week but Slot is backing him to learn from the experience.
“Trent is going to miss the game tomorrow. We are going to have to see if he’s able to play on Sunday (against Plymouth in the FA Cup),” Slot said.
“He’s already back out on the pitch with the rehab coach. Let’s see how long it’s going to take.
“We played quite a good game in Eindhoven when you take into account the team we played with but we conceded three goals. We didn’t do much wrong, just some small details.
“That’s also the feedback we gave Conor. He wasn’t involved in every goal but he was involved in one in my opinion, where he didn’t follow the overlap aggressively enough and that led to the third goal.”
Slot was giving nothing away over whether Alisson or Caoimhin Kelleher will start against Tottenham.
He said: “I know but the two goalkeepers don’t know yet.”
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(Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
