Arne Slot has already explained why Federico Chiesa left first Liverpool training session early

Some Liverpool fans were concerned on Friday when Federico Chiesa left his first training session with the club early.

The Italian forward recently joined the Reds from Juventus, with Liverpool agreeing to pay a fee that could rise to $16 million. Chiesa had been sidelined by new Juventus manager Thiago Motta, allowing Liverpool to sign him at a reduced price since he was in the final year of his contract in Turin.

Chiesa has struggled with injuries in recent years, which has affected his reputation as a fast, dynamic winger. So, it was understandable that some Liverpool fans were worried when he didn’t participate in an attacking drill that included Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez, and Cody Gakpo.

However, Chiesa gave a thumbs-up as he left the training pitch, seemingly reassuring fans that he had not suffered an injury.

It’s likely that Chiesa’s early departure from the session was pre-planned by manager Arne Slot, with the intention of gradually increasing the Italian’s involvement in training over the coming days. This approach is also common when players return to Liverpool for pre-season after their summer breaks.

During his press conference on Friday, Slot mentioned that Chiesa was unlikely to be involved in the upcoming match at Old Trafford. “He’s going to train with us today, but there’s a bigger chance that he’s not in the squad for Sunday than that he is,” Slot said. “If injuries come up in the next two days, we might need him, but I don’t expect him to be in the squad, though I can’t guarantee this.”

One player who will definitely be unavailable against United is Curtis Jones. “At the moment, there are no other injuries except for Curtis Jones, and he will not train with us today,” Slot said on Friday. “But the rest will train with us today.”