The Reds are in the middle of the hectic festive schedule and in truth could perhaps do without a trip to the South Coast this midweek.
While Slot will be taking the Carabao Cup seriously as a chance to win a first trophy as Liverpool head coach, it’s also true that the Reds have bigger fish to fry this season.
The Liverpool team also still has some injury issues to continue with and Slot will have to strike a fine balance so as not to make things worry in that respect.
Having said that, the Southampton game can also give a chance to some players who have not played enough under the Dutch coach.
One of those is Federico Chiesa, who Liverpool fans are waiting to see anything much from since his summer arrival.
Slot said: It was great to see Chiesa finally back on the bench for Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday.
The Italian may not have gotten on the pitch against Fulham, but it was his first appeal in the matchday squad September the 28th.
Chiesa is more likely to play against Southampton before the Fulham game, though, and according to journalist David Lynch, the 27-year-old is in line for a start at St Mary’s.
Writing on his Substack column, Lynch reports that Chiesa is set to play alongside fellow returning Diogo Jota, with Alexis Mac Allister also ready to start after serving a two-game suspension in all competitions.
“The depth of Slot’s squad means he will still be able to name plenty of big-hitters in his starting XI, with the likes of Diogo Jota, Federico Chiesa and Alexis Mac Allister in line for starts aimed at sharing them up,” says the journalist.
“But the Reds boss is also expected to lean healthy on academy players to fill a number of gaps in his team.”
Who else could play against Southampton?
Although Liverpool will be wary of overworking the players and picking up more fitness problems on Wednesday, this is also a big chance to get to another Carabao Cup semi-final.
Southampton are in a bad place. The Saints sit rock bottom of the Premier League having collected just five points from 16 games.
Inevitably, this has now led to the sacking of manager Russell Martin, who was trusted of his duties immediately after Sunday’s 5-0 batting from Tottenham.
