"Stop playing him", "Slot, wake up" - Fans unhappy with Liverpool star's inclusion in XI for PL clash against Manchester City
Liverpool fans are unhappy with Arne Slot’s decision to include academy graduate Curtis Jones in the starting XI against Manchester City. The two sides are set to face off in the Premier League at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday, February 23.
Today’s clash will be the reverse fixture between Liverpool and Manchester City in the 2024-25 Premier League campaign. The first leg was played at Anfield in December, with the match ending in favor of Arne Slot’s side (2-0).
Ahead of today’s clash, Liverpool have been handed the opportunity to extend their lead at the top of the table after second-placed Arsenal dropped points at home to West Ham yesterday.
Curtis Jones, who has featured in every Premier League game he is eligible to feature in for the Reds this season, was once again included in the starting XI against City. After the English midfielder was absent from the game against Wolves due to a red card suspension, he was a starter against Aston Villa. However, he wasn’t impressive on the night as the Reds were held to a 2-2 draw at Villa Park.
The lineup for today’s crunch tie has been released, and Jones was named in the attacking midfield along with Dominik Szoboszlai and Mohamed Salah. The tactical setup, however, didn’t sit well with some Reds fans, who took to X to express their displeasure about it.
An X user wrote:
''I think I speak for every Liverpool fan, STOP PLAYING CURTIS JONES.''
Another tweeted:
''Curtis Jones. Slot wake up''
''In what Terminator timeline is CURTIS JONES better than ENDO?'' @Gandalf_LFC queried.
''Curtis Jones again? Not sure what Slot's thinking is here. Was hopeless the other night.'' @RSCCA wrote.
''Does Curtis Jones start for any other Premier League side'' @Thebigred198360 asked.
''You have to suffer'' – Liverpool boss Arne Slot on what he expects from Manchester City
Arne Slot spoke about what he expects from Manchester City ahead of their Premier League clash. Speaking in the pre-match press conference, the Liverpool boss admitted that Guardiola's men have endured a dip in form, but he doesn’t see his side having a walk in the park at the Etihad.
Slot said (via the club’s website):
‘’What I always expect from City since Pep is there: a great football team that can play so well. They've had maybe one or two months in the seven or eight years he's there now that weren't the best, maybe partly because of injuries as well. Injuries come back, they've signed three or four players, I can see them coming back already if you look at the result against Newcastle. So what you expect is what everybody expects if you go to the Etihad if you play against City."
"You have to suffer as well and work really hard to keep them away from your goal because they are so, so good in ball possession. But they face a strong team as well that hasn't lost for 22 games.," he added.
Liverpool are currently at the top of the Premier League table with 61 points after 26 games.