Liverpool Manager Slot Prioritizes Rest Over Finishing Top of Champions League Group

Liverpool manager Arne Slot prioritizes resting key players over finishing top of their Champions League group, citing the need to manage workload amid a congested schedule.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has prioritized resting his key players over finishing top of their Champions League league phase group. With a spot in the last 16 already secured, Slot has opted to leave several regular starters behind for Wednesday's match against PSV Eindhoven. As Slot explained, “Giving players a break is more of a priority than maintaining first place in the standings.”

The list of absentees includes captain Virgil van Dijk, top scorer Mohamed Salah, and goalkeeper Alisson, as well as Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate, Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Luis Diaz. With Liverpool also competing in the Premier League, FA Cup, and League Cup, Slot recognizes the importance of managing his squad's workload to ensure they remain competitive throughout the season.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot emphasized the importance of managing his players' workload, citing the congested European football calendar. “I think we are playing, like all the teams in Europe, many, many, many games and these players have already, so all the ones that are left behind could have played tomorrow,” Slot told reporters. He highlighted Liverpool's approach to providing breaks for their players throughout the season.

Slot explained that Liverpool have consistently given their players breaks during the week, particularly during League Cup and FA Cup matches. “If you look back at our season, it's been almost every time after three or four or five weeks, we gave them a break during the week when it was the League Cup or the FA Cup. If there was a moment for them to get some freshness back, we've always done that.” This approach has informed his decision to rest key players for the match against PSV Eindhoven.

Despite having won all seven of their Champions League matches, Liverpool could still be overtaken by Barcelona at the top of the group if they lose to PSV. However, Slot is not overly concerned about their final position. He noted that Liverpool cannot slip out of the top two and that their opponent in the round of 16 will be determined by a draw, regardless of whether they finish first or second. “It took me a while to understand this new format, but I always say when I think I'm 100% sure I used 99.9%, but now I can say I'm 100% sure that it doesn't matter at all if we end up first or second,” Slot said.

Arne Slot insisted we will be doing everything to win at PSV, as he explained the rationale for naming a rotated squad for tomorrow’s #UCL tie ⤵️

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) January 28, 2025

Slot emphasized that Liverpool will still strive to win the match against PSV, rather than intentionally trying to lose. “Because we will play a side between 15th and 18th place, and then in the end it's a draw which of the teams we are going to face. So this is a game for us, because we are now number one, or two, we cannot drop to number three. But a very wise man once said to me, I've never seen anything good coming from losing a football game, so we are not going into the game tomorrow trying to lose the game, we will do everything we can trying to win it of course.”

PSV Eindhoven, currently 19th on 11 points, will guarantee their place in the playoffs if they avoid defeat against Liverpool.