The big reason why Arne Slot went STRONG with Liverpool lineup vs Lille

Even though we are now firmly at the back end of the season, the Champions League group phase has yet to finish.

The new-look format means each team now plays eight group games, and Liverpool still have two opponents to play.

However, their campaign so far has been faultless, winning six out of six, including visits to AC Milan, Leipzig and Girona, while Bologna, Leverkusen and Real Madrid have all visited Anfield. As such, Slot's Reds lead the way at the top of the competition's table, with 18 points to their name.

Tonight, eighth-placed Lille visit Merseyside, hoping to go one step closer to securing a top-eight spot to automatically progress to the last 16 phase when the group stage comes to an end.

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Meanwhile, Liverpool have already qualified for the last 16, although the team is still going to need to be laser-focused if they are to benefit from all the hard work they have put in thus far.

Slot's easy lineup decision

It took a little while for the Champions League's new format to begin resonating with fans, but now that we are at the crunch part of the group phase, every game now has a certain amount of tension hovering over it, because of how quickly the ramifications for teams can change.

A slot in the top eight of the table guarantees immediate qualification into the knock-out rounds. Meanwhile, any team that comes outside the top 24 teams will be kicked out of the competition, with no hope of playing in the Europa League as a consolation prize.

Meanwhile, those who finish in either of the 16 spaces between 9th and 24th will have to play in a two-legged qualification tie to qualify for the last 16 - once again more games added to an already hectic schedule.

Fortunately, Slot has managed to ensure that Liverpool have safely navigated past that added stress and pressure, although the consequences for the next two games are still important and the Reds will feel a knock-on effect if they don't keep their eyes on the prize, topping the table at the end of the group phase.

Liverpool have a three-point cushion over Barcelona in second place, although the Spanish giants' goal difference is superior to that of the Reds by two goals. As such Liverpool need to win their next game and if Barcelona drop points in their visit to Benfica tonight, then the top spot will be confirmed.

A win over Lille tonight will add £1.73m in UEFA prize money to the £45m that the Reds are already set to receive - on the provision that the Reds' current position in the table remains the same in two games' time. Victory over PSV in a few weeks would add on another £1.73m, which would put the overall earnings in the competition to around £48m before the knock-out phase.

As such, alongside the pride of becoming the first team to top the Champions League's 36-team table, potentially doing so with eight wins out of eight, the club also stands to gain financially.

In addition, Liverpool's final position in the table is likely to make a difference with regard to which team they play in the last 16 from the preliminary knockout phase stage.

Only one point is required to secure a top-two spot, but that first-place finish is what the club will be eyeing up at this stage.

Having come through a challenging run of games in the Premier League, some fans will be wondering whether Slot is likely to change up the lineup tonight, rotating key members of the team and giving them rest as the fixtures across all competitions continue to come thick and fast.

However, Slot has gone with a relatively strong lineup, making just a couple of tweaks from the Reds' last-minute victory over Brentford on Saturday.

After working so hard in the Champions League up to this point, it would be a waste to throw away such a fantastic position and ensuring that the final touches are added to a glistening effort is fundamental - the team will have ample opportunity to rotate in the upcoming weeks.

The Liverpool lineup in full:

(4-2-3-1); Alisson, Van Dijk, Diaz, Szoboszlai, Nunez, Salah, Jones, Tsimikas, Gravenberch, Quansah, Bradley.

Subs: Kelleher, Jaros, Endo, Konate, Mac Allister, Chiesa, Gakpo, Elliott, Robertson, Alexander-Arnold, Danns, Morton.

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