Liverpool boss Arne Slot made the surprise decision to start Dominik Szoboszlai at right-back for his side's Champions League clash with Galatasaray on Wednesday night
Arne Slot has been warned that he may have blundered by deploying Dominik Szoboszlai as a right-back in Liverpool's Champions League trip to Galatasaray. The Hungarian found himself in the defensive line for the fourth time this season as the Reds lost 1-0 in Istanbul.
However, unlike previous defensive stints which were necessitated by injuries to Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley, Slot had all three players at his disposal for the latest Champions League encounter.
With Bradley being one of four players relegated to the bench following Liverpool's weekend loss to Crystal Palace, it was Szoboszlai who was given the responsibility of filling in at right-back.
Intriguingly, Frimpong also made the starting line-up, taking up position on the right-wing after Slot made the unexpected decision to bench Mohamed Salah.
Szoboszlai ended up conceding an early penalty when he accidentally hit Baris Alper Yilmaz in the face with his trailing arm while attempting to challenge the Turkey international in the box, providing Victor Osimhen with the opportunity to score the opening goal from the spot.
Earlier, Yilmaz had outpaced Szoboszlai after making a run behind the Hungarian, only to be denied the first goal by Alisson Becker in a one-on-one situation.
Former Everton ace Pat Nevin was on co-commentary duties for BBC Radio 5 Live for the match.
He quickly suggested that Slot's choice to field Szoboszlai at right-back had backfired.
"That decision to play Szoboszlai at right back and not Frimpong," he said. "He has been attacked twice, done for pace and has given away a penalty."
Meanwhile, after witnessing Liverpool's £29m summer signing of Frimpong from Bayer Leverkusen, Alan Shearer suggested that Slot lacked confidence in his natural right-back options, having chosen to start Szoboszlai in the position during their match in Turkey.
"They paid a lot of money for a right-back in Frimpong," he commented while on co-commentary duties for Amazon Prime. "You've got a really good prospect in Bradley.
"Yet you're playing a midfielder at right-back, so that tells you he's not comfortable."
puocmortz
2
Slot is making things hard for himself and Liverpool, how can you leave Bradley and Frimpong and waste Szoboslai as a right back, also instead of using Rio to replace Ekitike he brought in MAC Alister. Well, Slot should know that Klopp is free and can easily come back
Cekbmnopt
1
slot needed to be using in science not stubility information after this if there is no improvement slot will be sack
nimbciny
1
Slot is a wrong coach always making mistakes in his selections
Archway68
1
Slot is not good coach …. How benching Isaac and Salah and playing midfield as back while you have right back sitting on the bench 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
TalataSheriff
0
this coach is very stupid, you just lost in the premier league then in in the champions league again you much correct your mistakes now and sit down think carefully.
DaBIMliver
0
that way the opponent will have more than 1 striker to block. in this confusion goals will certainly come from them or the others
DaBIMliver
0
the problems is Slot is playing with 1 striker and keeping the rest on the bench. what stupidity. play atleast 3 forward. why did u buy Isak to be rotating, they can both play on the field
bamadiloty
1
Slot your stubbornness has coz us two games now, Slobo back to his position please, soon calls for head will start coming if you continue with this stubbornness
PrinceAbobyBlinkz
3
Sometimes the coaches feel like they have the right to play even the goal keeper as a striker, almost all the coaches make this kind of mistakes evertytime and it always backfire
raeaostyz
0
I don't really want to contradict Carreger, but the others were definitely not better than Florian yesterday. Szobo, Konate, Cody, and Gravenberg were bad, and Jones is generally not a man for a top team. If you buy Florian Wirtz, you can't carry on playing as before. Wirtz is a player who needs fast strikers. Strikers like Mo Salah want the ball played to their feet and dribble themselves. Florian can't do anything with strikers like that. Who is he supposed to pass to? He needs players like Erling-Haarland or Kilian Mbappe later on, then you'll see his class. Another problem, in my opinion, is that the older players who won the championship last year are too proud to subordinate themselves to a young (white-bread) German newcomer. If he's in a good position, they never pass to him, only when he's under pressure. His own team plays against him. Florian Wirtz only works when he's allowed to be the boss, but these lads will never accept him. It would be best if he were swapped for Musiala during the winter break. Price-wise, they're in the same league.
A lot of words but very little sense. So Florian Wirtz who currently has the strength of a mouse and the timing of a broken clock should be the focus of our tactics? He's not ready, too slow in the distribution and easily outmuscled in duels which has affected his confidence. He needs to be dropped until he bulks/speeds up and earns his place. Midfield of Gravy, Macca and Szobo to stabilise our defence too. Frimpong too predictable and gets caught high when ball is lost, Kerkez improving but slowly. Kerkez and Bradley should start, then it's a rotation of Salah, Ekky, Isak, Chiesa, Gakpo, Rio and possibly Wirtz.
Dizdimptz
3
When you see a good is when he start buying his own players, he used Klopp system last season, and this season all the players he sign nono of them has played well accept Ekitike. Anold left, he brought Frimpod and start using his as right wing, then deployed a midfielder that was doing well to the right back, Robinson that was doing well at the left back he stopped using him. How can he do well?....Slot is confused
diwacdlnu
3
I don't really want to contradict Carreger, but the others were definitely not better than Florian yesterday. Szobo, Konate, Cody, and Gravenberg were bad, and Jones is generally not a man for a top team. If you buy Florian Wirtz, you can't carry on playing as before. Wirtz is a player who needs fast strikers. Strikers like Mo Salah want the ball played to their feet and dribble themselves. Florian can't do anything with strikers like that. Who is he supposed to pass to? He needs players like Erling-Haarland or Kilian Mbappe later on, then you'll see his class. Another problem, in my opinion, is that the older players who won the championship last year are too proud to subordinate themselves to a young (white-bread) German newcomer. If he's in a good position, they never pass to him, only when he's under pressure. His own team plays against him. Florian Wirtz only works when he's allowed to be the boss, but these lads will never accept him. It would be best if he were swapped for Musiala during the winter break. Price-wise, they're in the same league.
Kizdersy
4
slot had a free ride last season because of the team but we are getting to know that he is not a good coach for the team