Arne Slot Expected to Trust Liverpool Youngster Ahead of Busy Schedule

Liverpool’s start to the season has so far been rather straightforward with three wins from three and no goals conceded yet. This is largely due to the brilliance of Arne Slot and the squad of players that he has flowing brilliantly. Another important aspect though was having near enough a full squad to pick from in those opening games, but that privilege is soon set to depart and might have already started to.

The big injury news this week was that Harvey Elliott has fractured his foot and will therefore miss 6-8 weeks, just as Liverpool’s fixture schedule heats up. There has also been worries over the fitness of Alexis Mac Allister during his time away with Argentina during the international break.

With that being said, Arne Slot will have to really utilise his squad depth as the Carabao Cup and UEFA Champions League returns over the next few weeks – leaving the Reds with more fixtures than ever. This could lead to a return for an academy graduate in the form of Tyler Morton…

Tyler Morton: Familiar Name but New Game

Many will remember Tyler Morton as a young, skinny but tidy midfielder working his way up through the academy under Jurgen Klopp. Highly rated as a youngster, Morton made nine senior appearances for Liverpool, including two impressive performances away at Tottenham Hotspur and AC Milan – with the latter being the destination of the Reds’ first Champions League fixture next week.

Since then, Morton has spent two seasons on loan at EFL Championship clubs Blackburn Rovers and Hull City. Across those loan spells, I was fortunate to watch him on multiple occasions and it’s fair to say he has improved drastically, both on the ball and physically. That’s 86 senior appearances in the past two seasons for the 21-year-old, which is absolutely vital experience that any youngster needs at his age.

Of course, there’s a big step up from performing in the EFL Championship and the highest stages in world football but Morton definitely has the ability to surprise a few people this season and I believe Arne Slot could hand him a few golden opportunities over the next few weeks.

Crucial Transfer Decisions

Eyebrows were raised in the summer when Tyler Morton was kept at the club, whilst Stefan Bajcetic left on loan to RB Salzburg. The harsh reality of it is that if an appropriate offer came in for Morton, then the club would’ve likely been happy to let him move on. However, that offer of £20million didn’t come and it could be a blessing in disguise for the Reds.

Many will disagree, but Morton is much more prepared for first-team football in Slot’s system than Bajcetic is at the moment. As mentioned above, one has played 86 games in the past two seasons, whilst one has massively struggled for fitness and rhythm frustratingly.

Morton’s ability on the ball and undeniable physical presence puts him ahead of Bajcetic at the moment, in my opinion. That’s not to say that Bajcetic doesn’t have the potential to become really special, because he does, but at the moment the club have made the right decision.