Arne Slot’s start to life at Liverpool has been better than anyone could have imagined when he took the reigns from Jurgen Klopp in the summer of 2024. The former Feyenoord manager has stepped into those massive shoes and put the Reds in contention to win both the Premier League and Champions League, but Jamie Carragher has a slight concern when it comes to his old club.
With very little transfer activity since he arrived in England, Slot’s ability to transform and elevate the levels of several players at Anfield has stood out. A prime example of this is Dutch midfielder Ryan Gravenberch.
Cast aside at Bayern Munich after being seen as a player with huge potential at Ajax, the Netherlands international struggled to cement his place in the Liverpool starting XI during his first campaign at the club. Slot missed out on his reported first-choice target for a new defensive-minded midfielder, Martin Zubimendi, and the decision was made not to dip into the market for a secondary player.
Arne Slot’s Loyalty Could Cost Him
The 46-year-old has placed a lot of faith in Gravenberch to hold things down in the number six role. He has done so with flying colours, becoming one of the breakout stars of the entire 2024/25 season.
However, Reds supporters have become concerned about the amount of game time Gravenberch has seen, with Wataru Endo being used extremely sparingly as the backup option. With just under 3,000 minutes in the legs of the first-choice number six, fatigue could become a factor in the coming weeks.
Former Liverpool defender Carragher has noticed Slot’s unwillingness to place ‘trust’ in some of his squad players. Writing in his column for the Telegraph, the defender-turned-pundit has claimed both Endo and Harvey Elliott aren’t seeing many minutes by design:
“The Liverpool manager has tended to favour the same starters from a preferred pool of 14 or 15. He does not seem to trust back-up options such as Harvey Elliott or Wataru Endo unless there is no option.”
Carragher: Slot Doesn’t Think Chiesa is a ‘Game-Changer’
That lack of trust could end up costing Slot if his side run out of steam in the crucial stages of the campaign. He would also need to rely on these players if his regular starters suffer injuries. Carragher doesn’t think the boss fancies his only signing to date, Federico Chiesa, either. He added:
“Last summer’s sole summer signing, Federico Chiesa, has contributed nothing. Again, his lack of minutes suggests Slot does not believe the Italian is a game-changer.”
The Italian winger has played just 10 times since arriving from Juventus in a cut-price deal during the summer transfer window. He’s rarely been called upon when Slot’s team are chasing a game, with the likes of Darwin Nunez, Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz more trusted from the bench. Everyone involved will hope this insistence on using the same 13 or 14 players doesn’t come back to haunt the Liverpool manager.
