Next 24 hours’: Arne Slot set for double Liverpool squad boost ahead of Arsenal clash in midweek

Liverpool’s squad is set to receive a timely top-up ahead of the pre-season friendly against Arsenal on Wednesday night.

Arne Slot and most of the Reds’ first team are in the USA as they continue their preparations for his first campaign in charge of the club, and having only had a skeleton group with which to work at the start of this month, the numbers have incrementally increased as July has gone

As noted by Lewis Steele for the Daily Mail, two more players who were involved at the business end of a major tournament this summer are due to link up with the squad imminently.

The report stated that Ryan Gravenberch is due to arrive in the U.S. ‘in the next 24 hours’, while Ibrahima Konate should be with his Liverpool teammates by Tuesday.

With nearly three full weeks having elapsed since Netherlands and France were beaten in the semi-finals of Euro 2024, and neither Gravenberch nor Konate actually seeing game-time at the tournament, both should be nicely refreshed as they make their way across the Atlantic and get ready for pre-season.

The Dutchman’s impending presence in Philadelphia feels particularly significant given the recent speculation linking him with a possible move to Galatasaray. If he were on the cusp of joining the Turkish Super Lig outfit, he’d hardly be embarking on a transatlantic flight to join up with the Liverpool squad.

The 22-year-old hasn’t quite established himself since joining from Bayern Munich last summer, making just 12 Premier League starts last term, so he’ll likely view this upcoming period as a golden opportunity to make a strong first impression on Slot.

Konate won’t be lacking for motivation either, having lost his starting berth to Jarell Quansah towards the end of 2023/24 and seen competition for places intensify with the flourishing form of Sepp van den Berg, for whom the Reds have flatly rejected an offer from PSV Eindhoven (Fabrizio Romano).

As they fly in to reunite with their Liverpool teammates, both of the Euro 2024 semi-finalists will feel that they have a point to prove to their new boss, so hopefully the pair can hit the ground running and give the 45-year-old a pleasant selection headache once the time comes to pick his starting line-up against Ipswich on 17 August.