Arne Slot's dream month as Liverpool wait on transfer hint and injury news

The wait is now finally at an end. And it will all begin this evening with a Liverpool player as Andy Robertson leads out the Scotland team as captain for the opening match of the European Championships against hosts Germany in Munich.

The left-back is one of 10 Liverpool players on duty for their country at the competition, which runs until the final in Berlin on July 14.

Some will have a longer involvement in the tournament than others. And recently-appointed Reds head coach Arne Slot will be keeping a watchful eye on proceedings before he is finally able to welcome the players at the AXA Training Centre from later in July.

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Indeed, the next month will prove instructive for the new man. What, then, shall Slot be hoping for in Germany?

No serious injuries

The most obvious aspect and always the most pressing. Liverpool have painful experience in the not-too-distant past of players heading out for international duty only to return injured - Robertson twice this season alone - although in truth major tournaments haven't as regularly sparked the same problems as breaks during the course of the season. Certainly, there won't be the same issues as the last World Cup in Qatar when some players were almost straight back into action for their clubs, prompting problems such as Virgil van Dijk's hamstring injury.

Alexander-Arnold answers

It's easy to forget that out of Trent Alexander-Arnold's 310 appearances for Liverpool, only one has come as a starter in the engine room. The 25-year-old, though, is regarded as a midfielder by England and is slated to appear there alongside Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham for the Three Lions' Euros opener against Serbia on Sunday. Of course, the options available to Slot are markedly different to those of Gareth Southgate. But the Liverpool head coach will surely be intrigued to discover how Alexander-Arnold fares in the position should he keep his place deeper in the tournament.

Dutch momentum

Cody Gakpo and Ryan Gravenberch experienced difficult seasons for contrasting reasons at Liverpool. But both seem set to be given an opportunity to grasp the initiative with Holland in the finals. Gakpo ended the campaign on a high and will hope to take that momentum into the tournament and beyond as part of the Dutch attack, while a succession of injuries have opened the door for Gravenberch to go from an unexpected call-up to a potential starter. The midfielder was showing some signs of having settled at Liverpool during the closing months of the campaign, and Slot will want to see if that has been maintained.

Jota fitness

One of many Liverpool players struck by serious injury during the campaign was Diogo Jota, who only managed one start after mid-February due to a knee injury he aggravated a few games into his comeback. The forward, though, has been available for Portugal during their warm-up programme, and in three 45-minute appearances has scored in two and contributed an assist in the third. Liverpool sorely missed the ruthlessness of Jota during much of the second half of the season, and will welcome him gaining extra sharpness and minutes.

Konate confidence boost

An indication form isn't always a barometer of international selection can be seen with the France national team, with Didier Deschamps prepared to stand by his preferred centre-back pairing of Ibrahima Konate and Dayot Upamecano despite the former having ended the season down the pecking order at Liverpool following some disappointing performances. Konate, though, has rarely let France down and Slot will hope a good tournament can restore any lost self-belief given his recent Anfield travails.

Transfer clues

While Liverpool won't fall into the trap of being persuaded to sign a player on the strength of their performance at the Euros, it doesn't mean the competition cannot provide some positive signs or raise red flags over those already on their shortlist. The Reds are in the market for, at the very least, a centre-back and a wide forward. But they will also be aware that a good tournament will bump up the asking price of any player.