Liverpool suffers a major blow after defeat to Galatasaray

An English newspaper report revealed on Wednesday the length of Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker’s absence following his recent injury.

The Liverpool technical staff, led by Dutch coach Arne Slot, are awaiting further details about the severity of Alisson’s injury against Galatasaray in the Champions League, after he was substituted in the second half.

According to Sky Sports, Alisson will be out for a considerable period of time, extending beyond the next international break, according to the initial examination he underwent.

The international break is scheduled to begin after the end of the next round of league matches (the seventh round of the Premier League) and will continue until October 19.

Liverpool will face Manchester United on October 19 after the end of the break.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot said after the Galatasaray match: “Alisson felt something. I can’t say exactly because I’m not a physiotherapist.”

The Dutchman added: “Usually when a player feels something and falls to the ground and doesn’t come back on the pitch, it’s bad for him, the team, and the coaching staff.”

He continued: “Alisson won’t be able to play next Saturday against Chelsea. I think so 100%.”

Liverpool will host Chelsea next Saturday at Stamford Bridge in the seventh round of the English Premier League.

Liverpool is expected to rely on new goalkeeper Georgi Mamardashvili, who joined from Valencia, in Alisson’s absence.

Liverpool Staggers

Liverpool continued to stumble after suffering their first Champions League defeat this season, falling 1-0 to Galatasaray on Tuesday evening in the second round of the Premier League.

The Reds lost their last Premier League match last Saturday against Crystal Palace (2-1), marking their second consecutive defeat.

Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen scored the only goal of the match in the 16th minute from a penalty kick.

Liverpool’s tally remained at 3 points, while the Turkish team achieved its first victory, raising their tally to 3 points.

Although Liverpool still sits atop the Premier League with five wins from six matches, the defeat to the Turkish champions raised questions about the team’s ability to advance beyond the Champions League. Hope certainly remains, but signs of decline have begun to appear early this season.

Last season, the team suffered two consecutive defeats only once, in March, when they were eliminated from the Champions League by Paris Saint-Germain and lost the League Cup final to Newcastle.

But there’s a big difference: the team was on the verge of winning the Premier League title, but now the setback came early, requiring Slott to act quickly ahead of the upcoming match against Chelsea.

After a sufficient number of matches, in which Liverpool failed to fully dominate most of the teams they faced, the team’s problems have become increasingly apparent.

Excessive Rotation

After a massive £449 million investment in the summer transfer window, Slott promised to utilize his squad more deeply this season, and he has delivered. One of the reasons for the team’s decline at the end of last season was fatigue resulting from relying on a limited group of players.

In Istanbul, Slott decided to field Hugo Ekitike, Jeremy Frienbong, Cody Gakpo, and Curtis Jones instead of Alexander Isak, Conor Bradley, Mac Allister, and Mohamed Salah.

This was the first time Mohamed Salah was left out of a crucial Champions League match since 2022, when he scored a hat-trick as a substitute against Rangers. Taking the Egyptian star out of the close season was not a good idea.

In his first season, Arne Slot benefited from the stability of the squad he inherited from German coach Jürgen Klopp. This time, the challenge is completely different. The numerous changes have left the team seemingly disjointed, and the cohesion on the pitch has yet to develop.

The constant rotation of new signings could complicate the process of integrating the players, but Slot justifies this by saying he does not want to overwork players who have not had a full pre-season, such as Alexander Isak, Bradley, and Mac Allister.

Arne Slot firmly believes that having a large number of players makes it difficult to manage the team, but he now faces a real challenge in finding the balance between maintaining fitness and stabilizing the squad.