Arne Slot has promised not to repeat last season’s FA Cup gamble against Plymouth when Liverpool entertain Barnsley in the third round on Monday. One player he will not be able to select, however, is Conor Bradley after it was confirmed the right-back will have to undergo surgery on the knee injury he sustained in Thursday’s goalless draw with Arsenal and is likely to rule him out for the rest of the season.
Slot changed all 10 outfield players for the fourth-round tie at Home Park and was punished as Plymouth, then bottom of the Championship, produced a huge shock to win 1-0. Slot compounded his selection risk with an inexperienced bench that included only two senior players; Curtis Jones and Darwin Núñez. Slot stands by his decision on the basis Liverpool were challenging for four trophies at the time. But with his team out of the Carabao Cup and a distant fourth in the Premier League this season, that pressure no longer applies.
