Arne Slot likes a settled XI but at Liverpool he must master the art of rotation

Arne Slot’s hopes of adding to his record-breaking start as Liverpool head coach were dashed with defeat at the weekend, but he did produce something that never happened during the entire Jurgen Klopp era.

By naming an unchanged team for the loss against Nottingham Forest, he stuck with a number of players who looked lethargic and out-of-sorts after a taxing set of international fixtures. Aside from Ibrahima Konate, the other 10 starters made two appearances for their countries in between Premier League games for Liverpool and on the evidence of the Forest game, a couple of changes might have provided a spark in a performance that was ultimately left lacking.

Klopp did not get every team selection right during his nine seasons in charge, but he never played the same starting line-up in games directly before and after an international break. Slot, however, did this at the first time of asking.

Also, when Klopp made the mistake of playing Argentina midfielder Alexis Mac Allister in the game away at Wolverhampton Wanderers this time last year, then had to withdraw him at half-time as he could not keep up with play, a lesson was learned.

The manager scrutinised the physical and mental condition of his returning South American players even further in the subsequent international breaks that followed and finished the 2023-24 season by taking 10 points from a possible 12 in games directly after a break. He made an average of 2.5 changes per game last season and while that figure changed over his nine years, he was consistent in mixing up his team.

Slot now has to learn from Saturday and find the formula to get back to winning ways. His biggest challenge is to manage the squad effectively during this hectic period of seven games in 22 days and he must take into consideration how disruptive the next set of international fixtures could be for his players.

Making changes for tonight’s game at San Siro against Milan now feels essential. With international breaks again in October and November, it will be interesting to see if he takes a different approach or sticks to these early patterns.

It is a small sample size, admittedly, but so far in the Premier League Slot has made only one change to his starting line-up. History shows he is not known for his constant tweaking. At Feyenoord, he trusted the information from his performance and medical team around fitness and energy levels and in turn was able to pick from a squad with 95 per cent availability over two years.

Last season, he used the second-fewest players (25) during the season and Feyenoord were also ranked 11th for total changes to the starting XI, a figure which played into his thinking this summer.

When asked about his general approach before the Forest game, he replied: “My former teams… we were actually able to play almost every game with the same players, but it’s a different league. I might have to adjust to that.”

When Liverpool were shaping their squad after his arrival, the head coach made it clear he was happy working with a reduced but close-knit group. Slot felt the benefits of a relatively small squad — made up of 23 senior players and a selection of talented youngsters — would be greater than trying to manage a larger group.

Liverpool are well stocked in certain positions but, as this squad depth chart illustrates, there are weaker points, particularly in midfield and centre-half, where Slot could be forced to turn to a relatively untested youngster if injuries or suspensions bite.

It is not as if he had plenty of fresh alternatives to turn to from the bench over the weekend, either, as Cody Gakpo, Conor Bradley, Kostas Tsimikas and Jarell Quansah also played two fixtures with their respective nations, either with the senior or age-group teams. An injury to Harvey Elliott also ruled out a player who worked wonders as an impact player last season, but the obvious ignoring of Darwin Nunez, who was fresh after missing a long trip to Uruguay due to suspension, felt like a missed opportunity.

Perhaps Curtis Jones would have given the midfield a bite that was lacking, or a more consistent passing option to MacAllister and Dominik Szoboszlai, who looked surprisingly weary and misplaced more passes between them than in any of the three previous games.

Slot, for his part, was keen to downplay the significance of failing to rotate in the Forest defeat when asked about the issue at a press conference before Tuesday’s meeting with Milan.

“In the end, if you don’t win you try to look at as many arguments as you can find,” he said. “I ask myself the question, ‘Does it have to do with (rotation)?’.

“But I prefer to look at what we did well and what we didn’t do well. I think we could have done a lot of things much better that was not related to rotation.

“Too many players didn’t reach their normal level. That was not only the ones that started but also the ones that came in. For me, it had a lot to do with the playing style of the opponent, who made it really difficult for us.”

The title cannot be won before Christmas, but it can easily be lost and with Manchester City’s form showing no signs of slowing up, Liverpool know every mistake is a major setback.

Returning to the Champions League is an additional challenge for a squad that eventually ran out of steam in the closing months of last season despite playing in the lower-ranked Europa League. Federico Chiesa, the only new addition, trained with the team and could be handed a debut. An impact would come as a timely boost.

While Liverpool would have bounced into Tuesday’s game with a win at the weekend, the outlook looks a lot different in defeat. Slot has not faced the strain of needing to win every week in his managerial career yet but is now tasked with reversing the mood.

He is also not used to playing so many games in such a short space of time. When Feyenoord were defending their title and stepping up a level in the Champions League last season, they completed the season in a total of 45 games. Having no third domestic cup competition was a factor in that figure. Compare that to Liverpool, who played 58 games and would like to play more this season, and the difference is clear.

Getting the team selection right in the weeks ahead could be the difference in determining whether a steady start turns into a spectacular one.

(Top photo: John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)