Arne Slot's key dilemmas as Liverpool squad BEEFS UP for pre-season tour

Arne Slot is waiting for several senior players to return from their holidays and therefore plenty of youngsters will have a chance to shine under the new head coach.

He has picked a lot of young players to take to the USA for Liverpool’s pre-season tour as they face Real Betis, Arsenal and Manchester United.

With it being a clean slate at Anfield from now on every player has to make the most of these friendlies.

Jurgen Klopp was persistent in giving a chance to young players coming through but what players on the USA tour have something to show after not getting many first-team chances under the German?

A battle to be Alisson’s understudy

Alisson Becker is one of those players who will be back involved a bit later in pre-season after his time with Brazil at the Copa America.

Caoimhín Kelleher is in the squad travelling to the USA but has been linked with a move away, so there is a chance for Vitezslav Jaros and Harvey Davies to claim the back-up role.

Davies has been at Liverpool since joining at under-nine level and has already had invaluable experience as he was on the bench for both legs of the Champions League quarter-finals against Real Madrid in the 2020/21 season.

After that, he was involved in pre-season camps which prompted his first senior loan move away from the club joining Crewe Alexandra in League Two.

Davies played 21 of the first 22 league games but after errors leading to goals he was dropped which ultimately led to him losing his place completely.

So it is fair to say the 20-year-old should want to right those wrongs in pre-season, but Jaros will be strong competition for the number two spot.

However, there could still be a spot in the squad for Davies as Adrian has now left. Slot will need a number three but that could stunt his development so another loan looks most logical.

Could Tsimikas have some competition?

Kostas Tsimikas is with the travelling party and has been a valuable part of the Liverpool team for a few years now but that could be about to change.

Luke Chambers has been one to watch coming through the youth academy for a few years now; so much so that even Bayer Leverkusen were linked with him last year.

The 20-year-old has two senior appearances to his name for the Reds after playing against Leicester City in the League Cup and Toulouse in the Europa League last season.

Over the last two seasons, he has gained plenty of first-team experience with loans out to Kilmarnock and Wigan Athletic.

At Wigan he established himself as a regular starter but not just at left-back as he was played in the centre of defence as well as on the wing.

That versatility is always viewed as a good trait but with Andy Robertson set to be the first choice under Slot he could find it difficult to get minutes.

Wigan have again been linked but Slot will wait to see whether his level is a bit higher than another League One loan.

Midfield loanee who went under the radar

Due to the number of players that need game time to develop Liverpool always makes use of the loan market with 20 players gaining experience last season.

One of those was Luca Stephenson in League Two with Barrow and due to the fact he has never been involved in a senior matchday squad he was overlooked by fans.

Nonetheless the 20-year-old impressed for Barrow playing 30 league games and he is another one who showed his versatility as he played in his natural position in midfield as well as at right-back, right wing and even up front.

In Liverpool’s behind-closed-doors pre-season loss against Preston, Stephenson did fill in at right-back so whether that will be his permanent role moving forward remains unknown.

With Liverpool being linked with several midfielders he could be one to make Slot rethink about going into the transfer market after the USA tour if he has consistent performances.

Surprise starter given another chance

Many Liverpool fans will be able to cast their mind back to the League Cup run back in the 2021/22 season when Takumi Minamino and Divock Origi were the stars in the early rounds.

The pair scored against Preston in the round of 16 when they were in attack with Harvey Blair who was given his debut by Klopp out of the blue.

He only lasted 55 minutes in that game when it was clear to see that it was a very firm test for his first senior outing.

A few years on though when it seemed that he may not have a future at Liverpool he has appeared to have caught Slot’s eye.

With the likes of Trey Nyoni and Lewis Koumas coming through in attacking areas and being several years younger than the 20-year-old this pre-season tour does feel like a make-or-break period for the winger.

If he shows he is capable the chance for a first loan away from Liverpool should be on the cards with an even slimmer possibility of being an understudy to Mo Salah.