Arne Slot saw "ups and downs" with Federico Chiesa's performance during the 2-1 victory at Southampton on Wednesday.

Liverpool has reached the semifinals of the Carabao Cup thanks to the win at St. Mary's. Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott both scored inside 32 minutes to give the Reds a comfortable lead before Cameron Archer pulled a goal back for the hosts in the second half.

Wednesday was Chiesa's first appearance for the Reds since September. The 27-year-old Italian has struggled to make an impact since joining Liverpool from Juventus at the end of last summer's transfer window, playing just three times before the Saints game.

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Chiesa was introduced just after the break on Wednesday but failed to score or create a goal, and Slot didn't seem fully convinced by the winger's display in his post-match interview. "I think what I saw is what you can expect," said the coach when asked on Chiesa.

"If a player is out for five or six months, you cannot expect (him to be at his best straight away). I saw ups and downs. I saw some really good moments and I saw some moments where I felt like, ‘OK, you can do better than this’. For me, that’s completely normal if a player’s been out for so long, plays his first game in five or six months probably (three months)."

Slot went on to note Chiesa's lack of a preseason at Liverpool, having joined just before deadline day. He added: "I already said before that that makes it also so difficult for me because normally in a pre-season a player gets three, four or five games, especially.

"And then he’s only had four or five weeks now he’s out for so long, so to get him back to his best level is not easy but it was good to see that he showed some quality already today. “But same for him, like the youngsters, it’s not enough to play at this level.

"You have to compete with Mo Salah, Cody Gakpo, Lucho (Luis Diaz), Darwin, Diogo (Jota). But it’s good to see that he’s back and he also had a few good moments in the game."

Wednesday's result means Liverpool remains on course to win all four major trophies - the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, and Carabao Cup - under Slot this season. Arsenal and Newcastle have also reached the semifinals of the Carabao Cup, with the final spot going to the winner of Thursday's game between Tottenham and Manchester United in London.