Arne Slot disagreed with Jamie Carragher’s theory as to why Virgil van Dijk was benched for Liverpool’s game against Brighton, insisting he doesn’t need to find any more leaders in his defense.
Van Dijk was something of a surprise omission from the starting line-up at the Amex Stadium, with the Liverpool captain having started each of the Reds’ previous 36 league games. He was one of four changes made the penultimate game of the season, with Jarell Quansah taking up his usual spot alongside Ibrahima Konate.
The decision also sees Van Dijk’s run of 69 consecutive Premier League games come to an end – a run that has seen the Dutchman play every minute for the Reds.
Analyzing the change on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, Carragher suggested Slot may be looking to find more leaders in his defense, should Van Dijk not play at any point in the future. The Liverpool boss disagreed on that theory though.
“Nah, that’s not the reason now to play without him, to see if there’s a leader, because I think Ibou Konate is already experienced,” Slot insisted.
“Maybe not as experienced as Virgil yet, but he could definitely lead the last line, he does that probably with the France national team.
(Image: Sky Sports)
“For me, it’s more a thing to see Jarell. I wanted to see him against Chelsea together with Virgil, I want to see him tonight together with Ibou, so now he’s playing from the left, last time against Chelsea he played from the right, and I think he developed really well this season.
“He was already a very good player last season, but hasn’t had the chance to play a lot, so that’s why it’s interesting to see him again tonight.”
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Slot’s other changes against Brighton saw Federico Chiesa handed a first league start for Liverpool as speculation continues over his future, having struggled to make any sort of impact since arriving from Juventus last summer.
Harvey Elliott and Kostas Tsimikas were also handed starts, with Slot seemingly having one eye on next season.
“It’s interesting for me to see a few players that we haven’t seen enough if you look at their quality, so then I talk about Jarell Quansah, Harvey Elliott and Federico Chiesa,” Slot explained.
“This is a good moment for them to show where they are against a very difficult opponent because Brighton has had a great season.
“I think it’s good to see all of them, but maybe especially these three.”
