Liverpool FC face Accrington Stanley in the FA Cup and are dealing with travel disruption, injury concerns, and external pressure.
A week away from the exertions of a Premier League title charge continues on Saturday for Liverpool . The Reds welcome Accrington Stanley in the third round of the FA Cup at Anfield. Arne Slot 's side were beaten in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie with Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday night after Lucas Bergvall struck a late winner just seconds after avoiding a second yellow card for a poor challenge on Kostas Tsimikas.
So next up is the visit from League Two Accrington and with Slot expected to rotate heavily for the game, the ECHO brings you all the latest off-diary tidbits in its latest Liverpool FC Notebook... Liverpool travel plans plunged into chaos Liverpool's travel plans were plunged into chaos on Wednesday night after their flight back to Merseyside was forced instead to land in Birmingham. As a result, Thursday's light session at the AXA Training Centre has been cancelled with the players expected to undertake their own recovery workouts from home. The Reds were slated to touch down at John Lennon Airport only to be forced to reroute to the Midlands, around 80 miles from their planned destination, due to the worsening weather conditions overnight in the North West. It meant club officials were tasked with hurriedly arranging alternative transport back for the contingent who travelled down to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with those undertaking the job praised for how smoothly a potentially difficult situation was handled at such short notice, particularly given it was also late at night. As a result of the logistical nightmare, many of the Reds' squad were unable to return to their homes until the early hours of Thursday morning, which, ordinarily, would be cause for some concern ahead of the weekend's fixture. However, with Arne Slot set to rest and rotate for the visit of League Two strugglers Accrington, it's unlikely the bulk of the players impacted by the travel problems will feature prominently at Anfield this weekend, with Nottingham Forest still to play at the City Ground on Tuesday night in the Premier League. As is standard, post-match workouts are recovery sessions for the players involved in the previous day's game, meaning the cancellation of Thursday's training due to the late-night difficulties caused by freezing temperatures and thick fog around JLA and the wider region, is not being viewed as majorly disruptive for the club's preparations for the weekend, even if there is an acceptance they are not ideal. Morton facing race against time for Accrington Tyler Morton is doubt for Saturday's FA Cup visit from Accrington as he looks to shake off a knock having recently recovered from an ankle issue. The midfielder, whose three appearances this term have all come in the Carabao Cup, had been expected to earn a recall on Saturday lunchtime for the third-round tie against the League Two side. However, having missed out on the match-day squad for the Carabao Cup semi-final with Spurs on Wednesday night, Morton is now nursing his latest issue ahead of this weekend's Cup tie. With Slot almost certain to rotate heavily, Morton will have a strong claim to be included if he can shake off the problem in time. The Reds' head coach will update on the latest fitness concerns when he speaks to the media at 9am at the AXA Training Centre on Friday. Van Dijk aiming to keep squad grounded Captain Virgil van Dijk has called on his team-mates to block out 'noise from the outside world' as Liverpool continue on through a huge January that has started with a draw and a defeat. The Premier League leaders entered 2025 on the back of a 23-game unbeaten streak but were below par in a 2-2 draw with Manchester United on Sunday before suffering their first loss since mid-September at Tottenham in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night. Van Dijk accepts that difficult patches are part and parcel of the season and urged his team-mates not to listen too much to what is being said externally about their wider prospects this term. 'We don't listen to the noise from the outside world because before the season started, no-one would have thought we would be where we are,' Van Dijk said. 'So there is no point listening to the outside world. 'Can it be hard for players to do that? Of course. Social media and media is a big part of people's lives now. I can't control everyone's emotions but I will definitely mention it. 'We're going to have more difficult moments, that is a fact. We've been there before and that is the beauty of playing for Liverpool because every game is difficult. 'The pressure is always on us as players because of the size of the club, and everything we've went through and that is a good thing. You have to embrace it and I am really looking forward to the rest of the season. I can only speak for ourselves and at the moment we are feeling fine.
Liverpool Accrington Stanley FA Cup Travel Disruption Injury Updates Virgil Van Dijk Arne Slot
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