Arne Slot feels no need to substitute for Liverpool's trip to Girona following the postponement of the Merseyside Derby, although goalkeeper Alisson could return from injury.
Liverpool have had more rest than usual ahead of their Champions League clash with Girona, as Storm Darragh forced the postponement of their planned trip to Goodison Park against Everton on Saturday.
The Reds are the only team with a 100% record in Europe's premier club competition this season, making it five wins from as many games by beating Real Madrid 2-0 on matchday five.
Slot's winning run is already the longest of any coach since taking over from an English club in the competition, and the Dutchman will stick to his tried-and-true line-up.
“If we had played against Everton, we might have played against the same team, but you never know what that intense match could lead to,” Slot said at a press conference on Monday.
“I think it was a good decision to cancel it and when you play such a special match, it has to be played in good conditions, then it was a good decision.
“Now everyone is really ready, so there is no reason to rotate compared to the previous match. So we start tomorrow with a very good team.”
On location for MD6 in the @ChampionsLeague pic.twitter.com/05UHNPTLeJ
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 9, 2024
Liverpool are already assured of a place in the play-offs and Slot's aim now is to complete automatic qualification for the last sixteen by guiding them to a place in the top eight.
“When you play starters every time, you also need the result because we are trying to finish high to skip the next round,” he said.
“If you skip the round and still have a difficult draw, we will think about it differently, but we have to wait and see.
“We want to stay in the top eight, so we need a win and the first chance is tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Alisson has been out of action since early October with a hamstring injury, but the Brazilian is now in contention to regain the number one spot from Caoimhin Kelleher.
“He is fit. I think it speaks for itself when you can play with Alisson, who has been so excellent for this club and for Brazil for so many years, that it is certainly nice to have him back and available,” said Slot.
But if you look at how his replacement did, it won't be easy to do even better, so we certainly expect the same and perhaps some better margins too.
“But Caoimhin did so well, so we can say we have two great goalkeepers who can do the job for us.”
Girona are 30th in the standings in their first season in Europe with three points from five games, three points behind the play-offs, while Liverpool have 15, two points ahead of Inter.
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