NewsCody Gakpo fitness update

The forward travelled to Paris Saint-Germain for the Reds’ Champions League tie in midweek but was not named in Arne Slot’s matchday squad.

And, speaking to the media at his pre-match press conference on Friday morning, Slot revealed Gakpo’s availability remains up in the air.

“He didn’t train yesterday yet, so let’s see if he can train with us today,” said the head coach.

“Again, [a] close call it will probably be. It’s not a long-term injury but he still had a bit of pain yesterday so he was not able to train. Let’s see where he is today, so I can’t give you the answer yet.”

The visit of Southampton in the league precedes the second leg of Liverpool’s Champions League last-16 tie with PSG on Tuesday evening and the Carabao Cup final at Wembley next Sunday.

Slot was asked how the magnitude of that run of fixtures could impact his team selection.

“For me, the one against Southampton is by far the most important – not only because it’s the first one we play but it is a very, very important one for us,” he replied.

“So if, if I make the choice to play other players, that is because I think that is the biggest chance to win the game tomorrow and not because I want to rest them for the game against Paris Saint-Germain.

“So, the only way I make a change is because it’s only two days in between, and then I might feel that playing someone else is a better option, because we have many players that are of equal quality.

“But that then only has to do with us getting a bigger chance of winning the game against Southampton than it has anything to do with the Paris Saint-Germain game.”