It hasn’t been the ideal start to life at Liverpool for Federico Chiesa.

Having made the move from Juventus during the summer, the Italian has made just four appearances across all competitions for the Reds, including just a single start against Brighton in the Carabao Cup.

Seen as a no-brainer transfer given his initial $13m (£10m/€12m) fee, the fitness problems that raised doubts about Chiesa’s addition among some supporters have been on show so far during his short tenure at the club.

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The 27-year-old missed 14 games in between his Carabao Cup appearances against West Ham in September and Southampton earlier this month, with Slot admitting he needed more time to get up to speed with his new teammates after being left out of Juventus’ pre-season preparations.

Eyebrows were raised though when Chiesa missed out on a place in the matchday squad against Tottenham on Sunday, despite returning to action just a few days earlier at St Mary’s.

It had initially seemed as though the winger had been left out due to Liverpool boasting a stronger squad, with only Ibrahima Konate and Conor Bradley out injured. Slot though has since revealed why Chiesa missed out on the trip to north London.

“Sick,” Slot explained. “Ill, unfortunately for him because he had some minutes against Southampton, but unfortunately, he was sick in the last two days and today as well so we couldn’t bring him to the game.”

It’s not yet known whether Chiesa will be able to return for today’s Boxing Day clash against Leicester City, with the Reds looking to strengthen their four-point advantage at the top of the Premier League. If he is though, he will of course have a tough time forcing his way into the side, with Mohamed Salah a near guarantee on the right-hand side.

“He definitely is [getting stronger],” Slot said of Chiesa last week.

“You see him on the pitch now, it means he’s getting stronger and better. He had to adapt for quite a long time. I’ve said so many times, as expected if you miss team training sessions for so long.

“And then you go to a league where the intensity is so high as well, and to a team who plays with a lot of intensity.

“He is getting stronger, but he’s also facing a lot of competition in the right-wing position!”