Arne Slot has made Liverpool history without even meaning to on Everton’s big night at Goodison Park

The build-up to Liverpool’s trip to Goodison Park was dominated by talk of an historic night on Merseyside - but without meaning it - Arne Slot inadvertently created some himself with his team selection.

The big talking point going into the game was whether Trent Alexander-Arnold would be fit enough to start after missing the last two matches with a thigh injury. The defender returned to training on Monday but ultimately missed out on the XI, with Conor Bradley selected at right-back instead.

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“Trent was not close at all to start but he can come in for a few minutes. It is nice to have him because in the few games he has been on the bench he has come in and been special. We have more than a few good substitutes to make but it is good to have him too,” Slot told TNT Sports ahead of the game.

But that decision meant Liverpool started without an Englishman in the team, an unprecedented event. “Tonight is the first time in Liverpool's history that they have named a starting XI for a top-flight match without a single English player in it,” Michael Reid - an expert of Liverpool stats - wrote on X when the teams were announced.

Slot did name four English players on the bench with Alexander-Arnold, Jarrell Quansah, Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliot selected alongside Caoimhin Kelleher, Kostas Tsmikas, Wataru Endo, Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez.

The Liverpool boss made 10 changes to his line-up from the team that started in the shock FA Cup exit at Plymouth Arygle at the weekend, with Alisson, Bradley, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson, Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo all returning. Luis Diaz was the only player to retain his place.

The short trip to Everton begins a condensed run of games in the Premier League, with five matches in just 15 days. Therefore, rotation will be key for Slot and Liverpool.

“If you look at our schedule we have five games in 15 days,” he said. “If I would have played the starters at Plymouth that would have been six in 18 and if we went through it would have been seven in 21 days. It goes on and on and on - sometimes players need a rest.”