Liverpool's exit from the FA Cup has boosted their chances of Premier League and Champions League glory, according to Reds expert David Lynch.
Plymouth Argyle dumped Arne Slot's side out of the FA Cup when they beat the Merseysiders 1-0 on Sunday, a result that ended the Premier League club's chances of winning four trophies.
Slot left out numerous first-team starters like Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk from the matchday squad, and the team struggled to threaten the last-placed Championship team, mustering just one shot on target before second-half stoppage time.
However, despite the concerning nature of the performance, Lynch expressed his belief to Sports Mole that the Reds' exit from the FA Cup could ease fixture congestion and benefit them in other competitions, saying: "You would expect better from a Liverpool squad of any sort, even with a few youngsters involved, because there were a lot of senior internationals on the pitch.
"Where you take real upside, as much as Arne Slot will say he's disappointed to go out, he must be looking at that free weekend that opens up and the fact that every midweek is now not going to be clogged if you keep going in the competition. The fact that it would have been City away next takes the edge off it as well.
"It's hard not to see the upsides, and that's not dismissing the FA Cup because if Liverpool hadn't gone as far as they have in the League Cup, [they] could have poured more into the FA Cup, but once that happens, once you know you're through in the Champions League, once you're in this unbelievable position in the Premier League and you've only won it once in the last 30-odd years, you need to think about what your priorities are."
Plymouth were drawn to face Manchester City in the fifth round of the FA Cup, and Liverpool's exit means they are set to play just four times in the month of March, which should ensure Slot's stars are well rested heading into the final portion of the campaign.
How many trophies could Liverpool win?
Liverpool are currently first in the Premier League and could move nine clear of second-placed Arsenal should they win their game in hand on the Gunners against Everton on Wednesday.
The Reds also finished first in the Champions League table and look like one of the favourites to win the competition given they have shown a level of consistency that few have been able to match in Europe.
Lynch told Sports Mole that there is a better chance of Liverpool fielding strong XIs in the three remaining tournaments, and that they will be better placed to give their all without having to contend with the additional risk of injuries, saying: "Arne Slot's selection, not just the team itself, but the squad he named going down there, said everything about where [the FA Cup] is on Liverpool's priority list.
"He put on a front in terms of saying it was unacceptable, and he wasn't happy with the performance, but the reality of it is [that he] will see there are big upsides and positives, because it's not that difficult now to see Liverpool [being] able to pour everything into the League Cup final, and then have that balance of the Champions League and Premier League over the remainder of the season.
"You're not putting strain on your squad - the best example is Joe Gomez limping off in this FA Cup game that Liverpool weren't that fussed about. They're now short at centre-half. That won't happen again now this season. If they lose someone, it will be in a Premier League or Champions League game or the League Cup final, games that really matter."
Gomez's injury is not expected to keep him out of action for a significant period, but his setback highlighted the risks associated with progressing deep on multiple fronts.
© Imago
Could the exit be damaging for fringe players?
One of the potential drawbacks of being eliminated from the FA Cup is that fringe players that might have hoped to use the competition as a springboard into the first XI may not have many opportunities left to impress Slot.
Six outfield players have started all 23 of Liverpool's Premier League matches this term, while nine have featured in at least 20.
Lynch questioned how often rotational player like Harvey Elliott will be able to start between now and the end of the season when he told Sports Mole: "How likely are we to see that [Plymouth] performance again? The reality is not very - we're not going to see that line up again, which is bad news for the fringe players who are involved.
"It's very hard to see where they get significant minutes. How much will we see of Harvey Elliott? How much will we see of Chiesa over the rest of the season? Quansah, similarly. It's difficult to see where they get any involvement, but on the basis of a lot of those performances that you saw [against Plymouth], you'd say they don't deserve an awful lot either.
"I'm sure you'll see better performances from those players when they're given an environment to thrive in - that will be the hope anyway. I don't think it's anything Liverpool will take too much from, but the real downside [is that] for a lot of the players that were involved was that it's very hard to see how much time on the pitch they're going to get without those FA Cup games."
Wataru Endo, Federico Chiesa and Elliott have not yet started a single Premier League game in 2024-25, and unless Liverpool win the league title with games to spare, it is difficult to imagine Slot significantly altering his starting XI.
Lewis Nolan
