Liverpool injury news: Arne Slot sweating over two key players before Chelsea clash

Liverpool have endured two injury setbacks and consecutive defeats before facing Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday.

Arne Slot’s men were beaten 1-0 by Galatasaray on Tuesday, following last Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Crystal Palace.

A Victor Osimhen penalty in the 16th minute decided the Champions League clash in Istanbul, as the Reds failed to find a typical late goal to level the score.

Adding to the problems of the defending Premier League champions were the withdrawals of Alisson Becker and Hugo Ekitike.

Alisson was replaced in the 56th minute, while Ekitike was forced off 12 minutes later, with both players replaced by Giorgi Mamardashvili and Alexis Mac Allister, respectively, making them doubtful for Saturday’s fixture against Chelsea.

Slot provides concerning injury update on Alisson and Ekitike

Slot issued worrying remarks after Tuesday’s Champions League loss, effectively ruling out Alisson at Stamford Bridge on October 4.

“It is never positive if you go like this. You can be sure he’s not playing on Saturday,” said Slot to Amazon Prime via Liverpool World.

“I fear the worst. By the worst, I mean he can’t continue, and that’s what happened with Alisson. He’ll not be able to play on Saturday, that is 99.9%.”

Speaking on Ekitike, Slot appeared more optimistic, even though the forward remains uncertain ahead of gameweek seven’s trip to West London.

“He felt something when he had to reach for the ball when we were trying to force something,” said the Liverpool boss.

“I didn’t think we had an injury but Hugo felt something. He said he couldn’t continue, so we had to take him off; let’s see how he is for the weekend.”

Will injuries jeopardise Liverpool's position atop the Premier League?

Ostensibly, Liverpool should be fine without Alisson and possibly Ekitike, although Mamardashvili is unproven in the Premier League.

However, Isak knows the English top flight well, even if he has yet to fully settle into the Reds squad and had hardly any pre-season when he made his move from Newcastle United.

Having already struggled to secure victories all season, the recent injuries and consecutive defeats for Slot’s team leave the Merseyside giants looking over their shoulders.

With Arsenal’s recent win over Newcastle United placing Mikel Arteta’s team two points behind the defending Premier League champions before this weekend, the Gunners could have overtaken Liverpool before the Reds’ kickoff in Saturday’s tea-time fixture.

Ultimately, the team currently at the top must improve their performances to prevent this ongoing decline from becoming more concerning.