Arne Slot says his mind is already made up on squad players – ‘wouldn’t be fair’

Arne Slot has admitted that his mind is made up with certain squad players at Liverpool, regardless of the next two games.

The Reds have reached the final couple of matches of the season, with a trip to Brighton followed by a home meeting with Crystal Palace.

With Liverpool already crowned champions, these games could be a chance for Slot to shuffle his pack, giving fringe players a chance, as he did away to Chelsea.

But speaking in his pre-Brighton press conference, Liverpool’s head coach admitted that any individual performances in the next two fixtures won’t alter his thought process.

“I don’t think it would be fair to any player if you worked with them for a whole season and then changed your opinion on one or two games that are coming up,” Slot said.

“My opinion has been made up in 10 or 11 months.

“We know quite well the quality of our players, so the game against Brighton or the game against Palace is not to make up our mind or to change our mind in what we think about next season.”

A big summer of change at Liverpool

While much focus is rightly on incoming signings at Liverpool this summer, there are also likely to be some outgoings.

Slot has proven to be a ruthless boss since replacing Jurgen Klopp, highlighted by substituting Jarell Quansah at Ipswich on the opening weekend.

The Dutchman won’t hesitate in disposing of those he sees no future for at Liverpool, with several players looking particularly precarious.

Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota have both finished the season poorly and could depart, while there is no guarantee that the likes of Quansah, Kostas Tsimikas and Harvey Elliott will remain at Liverpool, among others.

The Reds may be Premier League champions, but their squad remains flawed in certain areas, which is an enviable position to be in.

If Slot and Richard Hughes can address both full-back areas and add another centre-back – Jeremie Frimpong is edging closer to a move – as well as sign a top-quality No. 9, it will be an excellent summer.

As for those battling for their futures, it won’t matter what happens against Brighton on Monday night and Crystal Palace a week on Sunday.