Federico Chiesa made his Liverpool debut in the 3-1 win over AC Milan in mid-September after joining from Juventus three weeks earlier. In the following games, there was an appearance against Bournemouth and a start against West Ham, before he disappeared from the field.
On 28 September, in the 2–1 win against Wolverhampton, he was an unused substitute, before withdrawing with a minor injury ahead of the Bologna match in the Champions League on 2 October. Twenty days later, he is still not back in action.
– It is always so difficult with injuries, especially when they have just happened. With Federico it’s a little easier; although difficult, it is a little easier to explain. He missed the entire pre-season, and he will now enter a league where the intensity is perhaps even higher than in the Italian league, Slot began.
– So it makes it difficult for him to step up to the intensity levels the rest of the team is at now. It doesn’t have much to do with Serie A or the Premier League; it’s more about the fact that he missed the entire pre-season, and then it’s difficult for any player to build up to the level we’re at.
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Many had been looking forward to seeing Chiesa, especially after there were no other signings this summer. So far, there have only been 79 minutes on the pitch spread over three games.
– It is difficult to say when he will be back, but it is a big disappointment for him that he is constantly going in and out of training sessions. I feel for him. But he has signed a long-term contract, so we will see what he can contribute. Unfortunately, at the moment he has only been in the squad once or twice, and no more than that.
Word button about the rest
The Italian winger is far from the only one missing ahead of the away game against RB Leipzig on Wednesday evening. This also applies to Conor Bradley, Alisson, Harvey Elliott and Diogo Jota. Slot had little to say about them, but he did offer a small update on the latter.
– Jota got hit (on Sunday), which we all saw, when he tried to go towards the goal and was knocked down. It wasn’t the biggest problem, but I think the other player fell on top of him and it hurt so much that he couldn’t continue playing. He cannot be with us now.
– It is difficult to assess at this point how long it will take, but he has some solid bruises, said the Liverpool manager.
RB Leipzig – Liverpool kicks off on Wednesday at 21.00, and is broadcast live on TV 2 Sport Premium and TV 2 Play.
