Arne Slot can celebrate as 2 players look CERTAIN to be with Liverpool for season start

Liverpool and Arne Slot received a big boost this week with reports that two players will remain with the Reds for the start of the season.

The Athletic reports that Liverpool will not lose either Mohamed Salah or Wataru Endo to the Olympics this pre-season. The pair were both in the running for call-ups to Egypt and Japan, respectively.

The competition isn't FIFA-run, meaning there's no obligation for clubs to release players. Salah and Endo will now skip the contest 'following talks', meaning they'll be completely available for pre-season and the Premier League kick-off.

If they'd been absent, Slot would have had to develop his system this summer while lacking two key players. One of whom, in Salah, will be at the forefront of everything he wants to do going forward.

Endo remains the only out-and-out defensive midfielder in the squad, too. In other words, life is a lot easier for the new Liverpool boss that he has them.

That's exacerbated by the fact so many stars are away at international tournaments right now. The fact that some of the first team is with him for pre-season is a blessing - losing them to the Olympics would have been a massive blow and disrupted the start of the campaign.

Olympic boost for Arne Slot

Liverpool will want to compete for the biggest trophies again this season - but that's a big ask, given the changes this summer. Their best bet is to get as much of the adjustment out of the way ASAP.

Salah, in particular, is a massive part of that. Getting him flying and comfortable in the new system will go an enormous way to giving Slot the start he's after.

So this is just great news all around. Liverpool may have a difficult pre-season regardless, what with all the absent players, but this is undoubtedly a boost.