How will Arne Slot replace Alexis Mac Allister in midfield this weekend?

Liverpool are facing a personnel crisis ahead of the Merseyside derby against Everton on Saturday.

Head coach Arne Slot was without six first-team players for the midweek visit to Newcastle, which finished 3-3, and lost one more player on the trip to the North East.

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Alexis Mac Allister - already serving a one-match Champions League ban for accumulating yellow cards - picked up another Premier League booking.

That brought his total to FIVE for the season in league competition, meaning he will now serve a one-match ban. Already without the likes of Alisson Becker, Ibrahima Konate, Conor Bradley, Kostas Tsimikas, Federico Chiesa and Diogo Jota, it’s a blow that Slot could have done without.

It means that along with a reserve goalkeeper and a reshuffled defence, the Dutch tactician will also have to remodel his midfield against an Everton side who won 4-0 against Wolves in midweek.

How will Slot replace Mac Allister?

We run through the options below.

Perhaps the most straightforward option would be to bring Dominik Szoboszlai back into the starting lineup. The £60m man isn’t always first choice for Slot in the Premier League and probably needs to contribute more in terms of goals and assists for the coach’s liking.

Just prior to the international break back in October, he removed Szoboszlai from his preferred midfield to accommodate Curtis Jones for the game against Crystal Palace. He was back in the XI by half-time however as Mac Allister got injured.

Since then Slot has been content to rotate his options in midfield, alternating duties between Jones and the Hungarian. And on the other occasions where Mac Allister hasn’t been available, the coach has opted to use Jones in a deeper midfield role alongside Ryan Gravenberch with Szoboszlai picking up the creative burden further up.

The last time Mac Allister didn’t start in the league - against Southampton away - it was Gravenberch - Jones - Szoboszlai for the midfield three. However there might be a concern over the durability of Gravenberch amid an intense run of fixtures.

Will Slot spring a surprise?

Plus, he is only one booking away from a suspension of his own.

The Dutchman wasn’t at his best against Newcastle and had to be replaced in the second half. In came Szoboszlai - who made a good impact - and the midfield was slightly remodelled to accommodate the change.

That’s the advantage of having a player like Jones, who can play deeper or higher up in midfield, and whose form has been imperious under the former Feyenoord boss. However, Slot might well opt to spring a surprise.

He could opt to persist with Szoboszlai on the bench for the Goodison encounter, meaning Jones starts in the advanced position and a more defensive-minded midfielder comes into the fray.

It could be an opportunity for Wataru Endo to stake a claim for a place in the team with Slot only really opting to use the Japan captain to close games out to this point.

There could also be a first Premier League start of the season for Tyler Morton, the homegrown prospect in desperate need of minutes.

That would be unlikely, however, with Jones likely to deputise deeper in midfield for Mac Allister. But maybe Slot might use Harvey Elliot from the outset, in an advanced midfield position.

It’s been a frustrating season so far for the playmaker, tipped to make a big impact under Slot and who finished last season so strongly for Jurgen Klopp.

It was the 2-0 defeat to Everton last season which prompted some big changes to Klopp’s XI in the closing stages of the campaign, with Szoboszlai becoming one of the victims. Elliott came into the team thereafter with the Hungary captain forced to kick his heels on the bench.

No doubt Slot will have analysed that fixture carefully and will put out the optimum lineup required for the Reds to get a positive result.

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