Arne Slot confirms worst Endo fears for ‘vulnerable’ Liverpool; hails ‘ridiculous’ Reds saviour
Arne Slot has confirmed Wataru Endo will be “out for quite a long time” after being stretchered off against Sunderland and hailed a “ridiculous” Liverpool star ahead of their clash with Brighton in the FA Cup on Saturday.
The Reds welcome Fabian Hurzeler’s side to Anfield after breaking Sunderland’s unbeaten home record in the Premier League with an impressive win on Wednesday to leave them just two points behind Chelsea in fifth and likely Champions League qualification.
But Liverpool were dealt another injury blow as Endo looked to suffer a nasty knee injury against the Black Cats as he came in at right-back to cover for Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong, who are already on the sidelines.
On Endo’s injury, Slot told his pre-match press conference: “We still need to assess but it’s clear and obvious he’s out for quite a long time.
“Don’t forget he is a good center-back and midfielder too and it is not as though positions…we’re quite vulnerable there as well.”
On the “challenge” of Brighton and his team selection for the FA Cup clash, Slot added: “Not the first time we’ve had three games in seven days, it is part of being a top club. It depends what draw you have too and we play a strong Brighton side, they don’t deserve the position they are in, they play so much better than the table shows, they deserve more than they get so it is another challenge.
“It took me a long time before I could fall asleep because I was constantly thinking of the same options. Which players, which other players, which positions, so I need another 24 hours.”
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The Liverpool boss also praised the performances of Milos Kerkez, who endured a tricky start to his Reds career following his £40m summer move from Bournemouth, and “cannot stop talking about” how good Dominik Szoboszlai has been this season.
He said: “The energy both bring is important, Milos has shown this season that defensively he is very solid and able to defend 1v1 against the best wingers in the world and more and more we saw what he did at Bournemouth, an offensive threat, the power to go up and down.
“Szoboszlai, I cannot stop talking about his qualities, close to ridiculous, on and off the ball, work rate another level, the intensity, he presses, unbelievable, technique, game insight, offensive midfielder, right-back, right-winger, all these qualities in these positions, he has been vital for us this and last season. He will continue to be that for us.”
