It was all going so swimmingly for Liverpool that there was always going to be some sort of bump in the road soon.

A two-point lead in the Premier League - with a game in hand - a place in the Champions League last-16 all but wrapped up, and a Carabao Cup quarterfinal on Wednesday shows what a sensational job Arne Slot has done so far, but injuries are now presenting him with by far the biggest challenge of his tenure so far.

He will almost certainly make wholesale changes to his side at Southampton, and who can blame him? Given the position Liverpool is in now, Slot’s first season will not be judged on whether he wins this competition in March, but rather whether he can now lead the Reds to domestic and European glory.

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Wednesday's game then should be about blooding youngsters and getting more minutes into the legs of those that need them. Yet again though, there are doubts over whether Diogo Jota will be involved.

"Diogo would have definitely been one that would have been ideal for him to play, but after the game on Saturday, he wasn't completely fit so he didn't train with us yesterday," Slot explained during his press conference on Tuesday. "Let's see if he can train with us today, but I don't expect him to start. Hopefully, he can make some minutes, but don't expect him to start."

Jota’s return against Fulham on Saturday was a huge boost in more ways than one. Arguably Liverpool’s deadliest finisher, he perfectly demonstrated what the Reds have been missing in the No.9 role as he rescued a point with a sublime finish in front of the Kop.

The relief of seeing the Portuguese back in action though has been tempered by the news that he could be absent again this week, having already missed 12 games this season following his injury against Chelsea in October. Granted, Jota could hardly be blamed for what was a - if we’re being kind - clumsy challenge from Tosin Adarabioyo, but Liverpool fans have become a little too used to him being unavailable since he made the move from Wolves in 2020.

This latest setback may prove to be nothing more than the 28-year-old just needing to be eased back after a lengthy spell out, but there’s always a fear with him that it could prove to be something more. And if that is the case, Liverpool has no other option but to start looking toward the transfer market.

Liverpool of course doesn’t suffer from a lack of options in attack, and Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo are all capable of filling the void left by Jota in the No.9 role. Without Jota though, there’s absolutely no doubt the other three are weaker options.

Diaz and Gakpo are of course better suited on the left, and there now seems to be a general consensus among Liverpool fans that it’s not going to work out for Nunez at Anfield. To be in your third season on Merseyside and still have question marks over your finishing, while only managing three goals in 20 appearances, speaks volumes about the Uruguayan.

Mohamed Salah is the goal-getter in this team, but Liverpool cannot rely on him forever. Even if he does extend his seven-year stay, it’s not like he’s going to be around for another seven years, and finding another right-winger that can produce the sort of the numbers the Egyptian has over the years is going to be near-impossible.

Given the injury problems in defense, that may well prove to be the priority if Liverpool dips into the market in January. There can be no doubt now though that the Reds need to find another striker, and one that means Jota’s absence will not be felt as much as it is now.