Liverpool dealt blow as Arne Slot says star man is unlikely to feature in UCL clash against Leipzig
Liverpool received an injury scare during their 2-1 victory over Chelsea in the Premier League on Sunday, October 20. Diogo Jota, who started as the number nine for the Reds, was subbed off in the 30th minute and replaced by Darwin Nunez.
After the match, Liverpool manager Arne Slot stated that Jota is unlikely to feature in their upcoming clash against German side RB Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday.
Jota was fouled by Tosin Adarabioyo in the sixth minute of the clash on Sunday for which the Chelsea defender was shown a yellow card. During their coming together, the Portuguese attacker received a knock to his ribs and was eventually subbed off before the interval.
According to the club's official website, the severity of Diogo Jota’s injury is yet to be confirmed. However, Arne Slot doesn’t expect him to be available for Liverpool’s next match. He said:
“Diogo had to be substituted and I am not sure what it is, but I’d be surprised if he is there on Wednesday.”
The Dutchman also talked about the other injury issues plaguing his squad at the moment. He added:
“I have a lot of confidence in this team, but you also saw today - after the international break - that we have some problems. Conor Bradley is not in; Trent [Alexander-Arnold], you probably don’t know, was also not training in the first days after he came back, so he was a bit of a doubt before we started the game. [And] then we had Macca [Alexis Mac Allister] being sick.”
If Diogo Jota is unable to feature for the Reds against Leipzig on Wednesday, Darwin Nunez is expected to replace him upfront.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot rips into VAR for interfering in the referee's decision
After the game, Arne Slot expressed his dissatisfaction with VAR’s intervention after referee John Brooks had awarded his side a penalty. In first-half stoppage time, Chelsea goalkeeper seemingly fouled Curtis Jones in the Blues' box and the referee awarded Liverpool a penalty.
However, the decision was overturned after VAR intervention as the goalkeeper got some of the ball before making contact with Jones. Talking about the incident, Slot told Sky Sports (via Eurosport):
"It's not important anymore because we won, but it could've been a crucial decision when the VAR overturned the referee's decision on the pitch, which I couldn't understand. I think if the referee looks at it for a minute, it already shows that the VAR shouldn't have interfered. Even in my opinion, if you look at it on the screen you still feel it's a penalty, but that's me."
The Dutchman also talked about the foul by Chelsea defender Tosin Adarabioyo on Diogo Jota in the first half. He drew parallels with William Saliba's foul on Evanlison in the Arsenal vs Bournemouth clash on Saturday. He added:
“Then there's the decision of the red card which I saw yesterday [William Saliba sent off for Arsenal against Bournemouth], was a red card in a similar situation. They’re big decisions, because penalties and red cards influence a game a lot, but it's also nice that these moments are inside the game because it creates a lot of energy. The fans really stood up today, they helped us a lot and that probably comes from these decisions as well because they're just as biased as I am!”
Liverpool currently sit at the summit of the Premier League table with 21 points after eight matches.