Dominik Szoboszlai has worked tirelessly for Liverpool but is unlikely to be rested against Newcastle United on Wednesday night, Reds expert David Lynch has argued.
The Hungarian midfielder played a starring role for the Merseysiders in their 2-0 victory against Manchester City on Sunday, scoring his side's second goal while also providing an assist for Mohamed Salah's opener.
Szoboszlai performed his defensive duties with diligence, but with Newcastle set to travel to Anfield on Wednesday, there are fears that the midfielder could struggle to provide the same intensity - on and off the ball - given the short turnaround.
When asked about possible changes in the middle of the pitch, Lynch argued that Szoboszlai may be in need of a rest, telling Sports Mole: "It is a bit of a concern. If [Arne Slot] used a more traditional formation in the last couple of games and he was using three of the midfielders, the other one who has been on the bench would absolutely come in to freshen things.
"I'm worried about Dominik Szoboszlai - the sort of running he's got through recently, I wouldn't mind seeing him rested to protect him from injury, but we'll see. The sports scientists will assess where he's up to and whether they can use him, but it will be an interesting selection."
Szoboszlai covered 11.5km against Manchester City, which was the sixth-highest distance covered by a Liverpool player this season, and it should be noted that the 24-year-old holds seven of the top 11 spots for distance covered by a Reds player in 2024-25.
Who will start in the forward line?
Slot opted to utilise a front two consisting of Curtis Jones and Szoboszlai against City, but the duo often dropped deep to help create overloads in midfield.
Cody Gakpo came on from the bench late on, while Diogo Jota was an unused substitute, and it would not be surprising if they came into the XI on Wednesday.
Lynch expressed his view to Sports Mole that Gakpo and Jota would not weaken the team, and that they will almost certainly be needed in order to combat the physicality of Newcastle, saying: "There's a couple of easy rotations you can make like bringing Jota, bringing Gakpo in - that doesn't weaken you at all and and helps freshen them up.
"They need to be fresh because Newcastle are very physical, can run all over you, although the up side for Liverpool is that Newcastle's away record is not particularly fantastic this season and they don't like coming to Anfield, so if the crowd is up - and Virgil van Dijk did call for that after the City game - then Liverpool might be able to get through it.
"If they can get through it, 11 points from that 15 available over five games in 15 days, it would be an incredible return given how tough those fixtures were."
Darwin Nunez was also an unused substitute against Manchester City, but Slot has criticised him in recent days for his lack of effort against Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers, and the striker is unlikely to feature from the start against Newcastle considering his manager's comments.
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An audition for Isak?
Liverpool face the prospect of losing Salah in the summer for free when his contract expires, and the Reds would undoubtedly be forced to reinforce the forward line.
Newcastle striker Alexander Isak has been linked with the Merseysiders in the past, and given his tally of 19 Premier League goals in 2024-25 is only bettered by Salah (25), some fans have suggested that the forward would be an ideal candidate to play up front for the Reds.
However, Lynch does not believe that Isak will be making the switch to Anfield, telling Sports Mole: "I'm very sceptical about the idea that Liverpool will sign him. I don't think Newcastle are under huge pressure to sell this summer - they've eased their PSR concerns, he's got three years left on his contract.
"£150m is an awful lot of money and I'm not sure which club would get anywhere near that. It's not sensible given that you know Arsenal need a lot more, Liverpool are going to have quite high turnover [in the summer] and it's a lot to pour into one player, who in the past has had fitness issues that you worry about.
"I don't think he's a very Liverpool signing either. I know [Liverpool] could go big for those transformational [signings] but I just don't see him even moving at all this summer. Newcastle will keep hold of him for at least another year and I think Liverpool will look elsewhere - I'm a little sceptical about that one."
Isak managed to score from distance against Liverpool in the reverse fixture in December, and Slot will hope that the attacker does not do the same at Anfield.
Lewis Nolan
