Arne Slot ‘trust’ issues spark major Liverpool change as three summer targets identified | OneFootball

Liverpool are already being tipped to replace a major summer signing Arne Slot ‘isn’t convinced by’ and ‘cannot be relied on’ after a tough debut campaign on Merseyside.

Building off their title triumph in Slot’s first season in charge, the Reds splashed out almost £450million on new talent, as the likes of Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, Milos Kerkez, Hugo Ekitike and Giovanni Leoni all walked through the door.

Of the new additions, it could be argued that only Ekitike and, to a lesser extent, Wirtz and Kerkez have made any real impact on Slot’s Liverpool first XI.

Record signing Isak has been hampered by injury issues that have damaged his game time, while Leone suffered an ACL injury in September, but it’s Frimpong who has been one of the biggest disappointments.

In a campaign where the Anfield outfit have been way off the pace in their title defence, Frimpong was expected to slot straight in as Trent Alexander-Arnold’s replacement.

However, the Netherlands star has struggled to adapt to the Premier League and also playing in a back four, having played almost exclusively as a wing-back under Xabi Alonso at Bayer Leverkusen. Indeed, one former Reds star fears the 25-year-old will never be good enough to be a regular starter on Merseyside.

And, according to a report from Football Insider, Slot ‘isn’t convinced by Frimpong’, with replacement options already being discussed ahead of the summer.

The FI report read: “Liverpool are definitely looking to sign a new right-back.

“Frimpong was the one they brought in as the replacement [for Trent Alexander-Arnold], but Slot isn’t convinced by him.

“He’s had injury issues of his own, and when he has been fit, there are midfielders playing at right-back ahead of him and that’s a major concern.

“So they clearly don’t trust him and can’t rely on him, on top of the injury issues, so they will have to go into the market to bring in a replacement.”

Right-back targets for Liverpool

While the Reds are unlikely to sell Frimpong at this stage, they are actively looking at stronger competition to avoid any kind of scenario where Dominik Szoboszlai is asked to fill in at right-back again.

Conor Bradley is expected back for pre-season after suffering a season-ending knee injury in January, but Slot is not fully convinced by the Northern Ireland international either.

To that end, the likes Inter Milan star Denzel Dumfries and Celta Vigo’s Oscar Mingueza continue to be mooted as potential replacements, while Roma star Zeki Celik is also a free transfer option.

One thing that should be pointed out is that Slot actually got more joy playing Frimpong further forward as a natural right-winger, following his little spat with Mohamed Salah.

And, with Salah leaving at the end of the season, there is every chance the Dutchman could be utilised more there going forward, with the addition of a new right-back slotting in behind him.