Arne Slot has warned Federico Chiesa that there is no guarantee of starting chances as he outlined the scale of the task facing his Italian striker.
Chiesa was the only signing Liverpool made last summer who immediately joined the squad, but things have not gone to plan for him since arriving on Merseyside; In fact, there has already been a lot of talk in Italy that he could return to Serie A during this window.
Slot, the Liverpool head coach, praised the qualities of Chiesa, who cost £10.6 million when he joined from Juventus in August, but a combination of factors has limited him to just 105 minutes in four games .
Many will have seen the FA Cup third round tie with Accrington Stanley as the perfect time for Chiesa to start, but Slot – who is considering bringing highly-rated youngsters Trey Nyoni and Rio Ngumha into his squad – has warned against making assumptions.
Given the 27-year-old's natural position, coming from the right side of the attack, the obstacle Mo Salah places in front of him is enormous and Slot hailed the Egyptian as an example of the standards Chiesa should strive for.
“Every match is an opportunity for every player to get some playing time,” said Slot, who hopes to have Jarrell Quansah available after he was withdrawn in Wednesday's defeat to Tottenham after feeling the lingering effects of his illness.
“It's not just been hard for (Chiesa) because of all the things you just said in terms of match fitness, it's also having to compete with the likes of Cody Gakpo, Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez and Mo Salah. – and everyone here knows the numbers Mo brings in.
“There aren't many times or reasons to take Mo out during a match or before a match. He's so fit too. I have said many times that he was the fittest player coming back for pre-season and he is doing everything he can every day to maintain his match fitness and he wants to play every game.”
Slot emphasized this point and continued: “He shows up every game. So it's not just about Federico when we talk about his limited playing time. It's also about the others. But as far as Federico is concerned, he has to deal with the way he started the season late in pre-season.
'The rest were already training a lot, so we had to train him in terms of competition fitness. It's a combination of reasons why he didn't play that much, but let's wait and see in the coming weeks and months if he can help us; the second half of the season is even more important than the first.'
On the possible involvement of Nyoni and Ngumha, Slot said: 'Trey has been in the squad many times, I think Rio was there once – Southampton away – but these players are doing very well and doing well when they play with the underclass to play. -21s.
“So as long as they continue to do that, the chances of them getting their place in the first team will obviously increase.”
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