Arne Slot reveals Liverpool star who missed training and explains why Federico Chiesa did not start

Arne Slot has explained why Federico Chiesa did not start for Liverpool against Accrington Stanley.

The Reds eased to a 4-0 win in the FA Cup third round at Anfield. It was the performance that everyone expected against the League Two visitors but an afternoon to remember for Chiesa. The winger netted the final goal of the win in the 90th minute when his long-range effort found the far corner.

Chiesa has had a frustrating start to his Reds career since arriving from Juventus in the summer transfer window, having suffered with fitness issues. It was a surprise that he did not feature from the outset against Stanley, with 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha handed a his debut.

That was due to the fact that Chiesa had missed training beforehand because of illness. He came off the bench for the second period and impressed, with his saved effort leading to Jayden Danns’ goal before finding the back of the net himself.

Slot is hoping Chiesa’s goal can be a confidence-booster although he tempered that with the fact Liverpool were playing lower-level opposition. The Reds boss said: “Rio was lucky that Federico wasn’t with us in the last two days because he was sick otherwise Federico would have started, of course. He can play 45 so we could play Dom for 45 minutes, bring him out and then Federico. It is nice to make your debut and if you've played for this club already, you want to score your first goal, especially in front of your fans. That's what he's done now and it's a good next step. Let’s not carried away too much. Although I liked the way Accrington played a lot, it is a League Two team but it is a good next step for him to be available and even score a goal.

“That is definitely true, but if a player is fit and he doesn’t get a chance to show it it is also a frustration. The best part of being a footballer is playing, doing well and winning. If you don't play because the manager makes a different decision or you're not avaialble, that is always difficult because every player wants to do what he loves most. Even I would love to play still but that is not possible any more.”