Liverpool are set to ramp up their preparations for the new season with a tour to the USA.
The Reds haven’t been to the States since the summer of 2019. With a big fanbase across the country, their arrival will cause plenty of excitement.
Ahead of the trip, Arne Slot has been familiarising himself with the Liverpool squad he has available.
It will be a big few weeks for the new head coach as Liverpool fans see his tactical ideas on the pitch for the very first time.
However, the Reds we see out in the US may still be a far cry from what we eventually come to know as Slot’s Liverpool. The Dutchman is set to be missing a whole host of big names for the tour.
Liverpool missing big names for USA tour
Liverpool are set to play three games in the US. First, they take on Real Betis at the Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh on Saturday, July 27th.
After that, Slot gets his first taste of Premier League opposition, with Liverpool taking on Arsenal in Philadelphia, before concluding the tour against Man United in Columbia, South Carolina.
It will be a big test for Slot and his coaching staff and will give some indication as to what we can expect from the season ahead.
However, as we know, the new boss is yet to meet some of the most influential members of the Liverpool squad. It’s hard to gauge his plans until we see the full group in action.
And according to The Athletic, that will not be happening until the Reds get back from across the Atlantic.
They claim that the quintet of players who reached either the Euros final or last two games of the Copa America will not report back to the AXA Training Centre until after Liverpool’s return on August 4th.
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That means no Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Alexis Mac Allister, Luis Diaz or Darwin Nunez.
Furthermore, Euros semi-finalists Ibrahima Konate, Ryan Gravenberch, Cody Gakpo and Virgil van Dijk are also said to be ‘unlikely’ to make the trip over.
All four players are said to be slated for a return a few days before Liverpool return to Merseyside. However, it’s claimed to be more probable that they’ll report to the training ground directly instead of flying over to join the group in the US.
Meanwhile, a decision is still reportedly to be made on both Alisson Becker and Diogo Jota. Both are said to be due back around July 28th, while Liverpool are stationed in America.
Liverpool youngsters given big chance
This is obviously disappointing news for fans in the US who have waited half-a-decade to see Liverpool return to their country.
They will be pleased to know that Mohamed Salah will be joining the group, but he is easily the biggest name set to be involved.
What it does mean is that Slot will be forced to give chances to young players or those on the fringes of the first-team.
Without the ‘incredible’ Van Dijk and also Konate, Sepp van den Berg looks set to get his chance. Van den Berg has been attracting interest from PSV, but if the 22-year-old can do well in the three games across the pond, then he’ll surely stay at Anfield.
Van den Berg won’t be the only one relishing the trip, though, and it will be interesting to see the young players who Slot brings in to fill in.
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