Mo Salah is among the substitutes for the third match in a row, it is reported liverpoolfc.com.
His omission underlines a bold selection by Arne Slot, who brings Conor Bradley back into the team after an injury.
The Northern Irishman replaces Joe Gomez, who drops to the bench despite the manager’s positive injury update earlier this week.
That update included the line: “Conor Bradley has been training this week… he will be available for selection tomorrow,” and now he goes straight to the XI.
Hugo Ekitike, Curtis Jones and Milos Kerkez also return to the line-up for this important Premier League match.
Salah’s decision once again dominates the story
The third consecutive placement for Salah naturally invites scrutiny, especially now that the Egyptian leaves for AFCON on December 15.
The former Basel striker came into action at half-time against Sunderland, but the Dutchman is sticking to the same approach, delaying Salah’s involvement again.
If the result is not to our liking, there could be consequences for consistently limiting the 33-year-old’s minutes given his history of decisive moments.
When we consider that Salah has scored 28 chances this season, the most in our squad, and that his record against Leeds is also excellent, with nine goals in six Premier League encounters, it makes the decision all the more interesting.
This is also our youngest Premier League XI under the former Feyenoord coach, averaging just 25 years and 325 days.
The last time we fielded a younger team in the competition was against Manchester City in March 2024, meaning this is one of the boldest selections of Slot’s reign.
Liverpool want to capitalize on Leeds’ intensity while Salah waits
Leeds arrive on the back of a 3-1 win over Chelsea, although Daniel Farke’s injury update earlier this week highlighted the fatigue within their squad.
He commented “a lot of trouble… especially in the functions where you have to invest a lot,” that our boys must be prepared to exploit.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin is still starting for the hosts despite fitness concerns, but Bradley’s return provides renewed energy for us on the right.
The to elect The preview showed that Liverpool have a 55.8% chance of winning this match, and we are unbeaten in our last six Premier League visits to Elland Road.
However, Leeds have scored within the opening eight minutes in each of their last three home games and we have conceded the opener in seven of our last nine league games.
That statistic alone could explain why the boss has emphasized energy and structure rather than direct experience by leaving Salah on the bench.
Salah will almost certainly feature later, but again the opening act is from a Liverpool XI tasked with proving we can start strong without him.
The decision is daring. The consequence, positive or otherwise, will determine the story tonight.
You can watch Slot’s press conference before Leeds via Kingdom of the Kop on YouTube:
Join our readers channel on WhatsApp to receive the most important stories of the day directly on your mobile
#Slots #bold #decision #Salah #fell #time #row #team #news #Leeds