Alexis Mac Allister injury update emerges for Liverpool v Chelsea clash
Arne Slot has revealed Alexis Mac Allister could be missing for Liverpool against Chelsea on Sunday 20 October.
The Argentine was removed at halftime with a suspected injury in the 1-0 win against Crystal Palace but travelled with the national side over the international break, completing 66 minutes in the 6-0 win against Bolivia on Wednesday [16 October].
Slot addressed the ongoing injury concerns ahead of the clash at Anfield in his pre-match press conference on Friday [18 October], with no allusions as to whether Mac Allister will be fit to feature.
He said: “Alisson is for sure not with us in upcoming weeks. That’s a blow for him and us. He did really well for this club for so many years. Caoimhin Kelleher did well for us previous years and this year, so we have a good replacement.
“We’ve got quite some issues and we can only judge that from today as it’s the first day they are all in.
“Macca missed one game, played the second. Kostas missed England… I can name them all and we have a few issues, so we will see. Endo was sick, we will see.”
Liverpool could struggle without Alexis Mac Allister
Unfortunately for Liverpool, the Chelsea side arriving at Anfield on the weekend is not the same side Jurgen Klopp put to the sword in a 4-1 win last season.
To his credit, Enzo Maresca has given the Blues a sense of direction coinciding with the continued stellar form of Cole Palmer, Slot has a massive task on his hands keeping the visitors quiet on Sunday.
While Liverpool fans may be concerned with Alisson’s absence, Caoimhin Kelleher has prevailed against Chelsea on several occasions and is in fantastic stead to begin his extended run in the first team after excellent displays on international duty with the Republic of Ireland.
Mac Allister on the other hand, is an essential cog in the Reds midfield, and when he is missing the side loses an attacking dimension Dominik Szoboszlai has thus far failed to catch the eye with his attacking contributions at the head of the midfield three.
Curtis Jones is more than capable of performing a role in the midfield against Chelsea but, his more conservative approach to possession will apply more pressure on the forwards to be the difference makers at Anfield.
Hopefully, Mac Allister’s workload on international duty was managed appropriately and his minutes on Wednesday were merely an indication he is ready to go rather than an outing that further aggravated an existing issue.
In other Liverpool news, Jamie Carragher has predicted the scoreline of the ‘big’ Reds clash against Chelsea.
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