Arne Slot has revealed he has no concerns about the fitness of midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, who was withdrawn midway through Liverpool’s 1–0 win over Burnley after being on the receiving end of a tough tackle.
Mac Allister’s ankle received the full force of a challenge from Burnley’s Lesley Ugochukwu, who was swiftly shown the first of his two yellow cards for the incident as the Argentina international was left in clear pain on the turf.
The Liverpool midfielder played the following 30 minutes but was withdrawn at halftime of the 1–0 win—a decision Slot admitted was partly inspired by the tackle from Ugochukwu.
“Not tactically, it was a bit of both,” Slot explained. “He missed a lot of pre-season. He is ready for one game a week, maybe 70 to 90 [minutes].
“He played 90 for Argentina and was really tired after 70 so doesn’t have the right buildup to play three games a week, 90 minutes. I was always sure I would take him off after 60 minutes for him to be ready to be back on the pitch on Wednesday and Saturday and I already made one substitution in the first half.
“If I take him off on 60 minutes then I would have to make another one, then if I want to make changes on 75 I can do nothing anymore. That, combined with the tackle that was a tackle that he felt. I’m not surprised by the fact he felt that tackle, by the way.
“It was a combination of both. He said it was fine and good enough to go on although he limped a lot. That’s more his mentality that he could actually perform at his best for 15 minutes longer.”
Goalkeeper Alisson also played down the severity of Mac Allister’s injury.
“He’s a very strong man,” Alisson told ESPN. “Nothing’s wrong with him, he was just in a bit of pain. I think he’s fine.”
Slot will hope to have Mac Allister at his disposal for Wednesday’s Champions League opener against Atlético Madrid, in which record signing Alexander Isak is expected to make his debut for the Reds.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Limped a Lot’—Arne Slot Offers Alexis Mac Allister Injury Update After Burnley Scare.