'Maybe the manager has to be creative' - Van Dijk's case for defence amid injuries and Robertson's red

One surrounds his own long-term form, with the 30-year-old having missed a large chunk of last season to serious injuries which have left him still struggling to find the form that made him, arguably, Europe’s best left-back in the not too distant past.

But his pending suspension also added to a defensive injury crisis that is currently sweeping around Arne Slot’s squad, in a manner eerily reminiscent of that currently devastating Manchester City.

It was only on Friday that Pep Guardiola blamed the schedule for City’s injury woes and warned all his rivals that they, too, will feel the brunt of it before the end of the season.

Now, Slot is preparing for an EFL Cup quarter-final trip to Southampton without the suspended Robertson, who also injured his knee during a calamitous 16-minute outing, with Ibrahima Konate, Conor Bradley and Kostas Tsimikas also sidelined with injuries.

“It has been mentioned many times already, injuries are piling up, you see that with different teams, and the amount of games we play,” said Virgil van Dijk, the Liverpool captain.

“Then injuries are bound to happen and that could change the quality of games as well. But what they (City) have been going through with injuries and inconsistent games, going up and down, we've been there as well and it's not an easy place to get out of and it's not an easy play to be in.

“I won't speak about them because I don't focus on them but I know how difficult it is to go through that and hopefully we don't go through it but we also have the injuries.

“Whether that is because of the load and all the games you don't know but obviously it plays a big part because it takes a lot of your body, not only playing the game but the travelling, flying up and down the world, but that is football for 2024-25 so you have to deal with it.” 

And deal with it, Liverpool have. So far, at least, although this home draw followed a similar point at Newcastle last time out and a midweek Champions League win in Girona which Slot labelled the worst performance of the season.

In the short-term at Southampton, it might mean a first start for left-back James Norris, his only other first team experience coming in a one-minute substitute appearance against Shrewsbury in the FA Cup nearly three years ago.

More medium term, and with the holiday fixtures approaching, Slot will be compelled to rotate massively and, with Diogo Jota making a goalscoring return from injury lay-off against Fulham, there are some positives for the manager.

Fellow forward Federico Chiesa, whose Liverpool career has yet to properly start following his summer move from Juventus, is also close to a return. That pair, back-up keeper Caoimhin Kelleher, Tyler Morton, a fit-again Harvey Elliott, Wataru Endo can all expect to feature.

But it is in defence that Slot has the greatest concerns, for Wednesday and going forward. “Let's see what happens on Wednesday,” said van Dijk.

“I don't know, maybe the manager has to be creative. The injuries that are there we have to accept and deal with, unfortunate of course, but hopefully things will change and players will come back as soon as possible in the best way.” Meanwhile, it seems ridiculously premature to write off Robertson as an elite fullback although his cameo here featured a painful injury in the first minute - two studs to the knee from Issa Diop - followed by his deflection helping in Andreas Pereira’s opener and a slip and foul on Harry Wilson earning him a straight red.

After Robertson was Liverpool’s best player in Girona, it was a sharp downturn in form, even if it appeared entirely due to the early injury.

“Of course. How good was he in midweek?” said van Dijk. “That moment, the first one where he gets the kick on the knee – hopefully it isn't a big injury – that's a dangerous one and in the moments after it happened it is not easy for him or all of us.

“But we are there for him like always and he has been so good for us and he will be still for us. Hopefully no bad injury and he can be back in the team and be good again.” 

In the meantime, as Cody Gakpo and Jota were required to twice equalise for Liverpool, cancelling out goals from Pereira and Rodrigo Muniz, their own left-back dominated proceedings.

Everton academy product Antonee Robinson was man of the match, assisting on both Fulham goals, and if Slot did want to start planning for life without Robertson, the answer may have been there at the opposite end of the field.

Is he the best left-back currently in the Premier League, his manager Marco Silva was asked.

“You are asking a Fulham manager, of course I'm going to say yes!” laughed Silva.

“What a performance! It was difficult to express in words the performance of Robinson this afternoon, again, and it’s not the first time.

“But I don't want to speak too much about him because I know whats coming in January and there is going to be again the same story about Robinson and really, I don't want to go in that direction.

“Robinson is really focused in the way he wants to work and behave and let's keep him as more focused as we can.” 

Liverpool (4-3-3): Alisson 6; Alexander-Arnold 5 (Jota 79, 7), Gomez 5, van Dijk 6, Robertson 4; Jones 6 (Quansah 70, 6), Gravenberch 7, Szoboszlai 7 (Elliott 79, 7); Salah 6, Diaz 5, Gakpo 8 (Nunez 70, 7). Substitutes (not used) Chiesa, Endo, Kelleher, Morton, Nyoni.

Fulham (4-2-3-1): Leno 7; Tete 6 (Castagne 55, 5), Diop 6, Cuenca 7, Robinson 9; Berge 6, Lukic 6; Wilson 7 (Traore 87), Pereira 7 (Smith Rowe 68, 5), Iwobi 6; Jimenez 7 (Muniz 68, 7). Substitutes (not used) Vinicius, Benda, Godo, King, Sessegnon.

Referee: T. Harrington 6