Liverpool are piecing themselves back together after several gruelling months.
The Premier League champions had seen their form and fluency pulled into a vacuum across the autumn, but December has yielded a seven-match unbeaten run in all competitions, and while Liverpool’s performances still leave something to be desired, they have at least reclaimed a place in the top four.
The title is surely out of reach. Arsenal are ten points above them at the summit, and a trip to the Emirates looms large.
Liverpool will need their players to be on form heading into that one. One star who is unlikely to earn a starting role is Federico Chiesa, though, with the Italian forward flattering to deceive on a rare shot from the start in the Premier League. His future in Arne Slot’s squad is very much in doubt.
Why Chiesa's Liverpool future is in doubt
Chiesa was purchased as a shrewd bargain opportunity, and Slot has treated as such. Chiesa, 28, is one of the most popular members of Liverpool’s squad, but his chances have been few and far between since arriving in 2024.
An overload of absences after Christmas gave the versatile Italian forward a chance to nail down a place, but it wasn’t to be as he failed to impress, hooked after an hour, having offered very little in attack.
Chiesa’s Game in Numbers
Match Stats
#
Minutes played
61′
Goals
0
Assists
0
Touches
23
Shots (on target)
0 (0)
Accurate passes
10/16 (63%)
Chances created
0
Crosses
0/2
Dribbles
0/1
Recoveries
2
Tackles
0/0
Ground duels
0/3
Data via Sofascore
Though the chances of Mohamed Salah playing football for Liverpool next season have slimmed, the chances of Chiesa finding regular football in the Egyptian’s stead on Merseyside are slimmer still.
Slot isn’t a fan. It’s clear to see that, with the clash against Wolves Chiesa’s only Premier League start of the season, and his first for a team who have not wrapped up the title.
Liverpool must part ways with the £150k-per-week talent in 2026 and replace him with someone more reliable, in turn giving Chiesa the chance to find the playing time he deserves.
But Chiesa isn’t the only one who needs to leave.
Liverpool mainstay could leave with Chiesa
Liverpool have shuffled their pack a fair bit in recent years, but Joe Gomez has been one player who has remained a core member of the squad despite not playing a prominent role in Slot’s system.
Injuries have been unkind to the 28-year-old throughout his career, but he has featured 253 times for the club since signing for the Reds in a £3.5m deal in 2015, leaving Charlton Athletic in League One. Gomez has won the full gamut.
Last summer, the Three Lions star came close to leaving, and though it didn’t happen, his fortunes have not really changed since, and 2026 looks like the year that Gomez will finally depart from Merseyside, over a decade later.
Newcastle United were keen, and Liverpool priced their dynamic defender at £45m during the 2024 summer transfer window.
Gomez is considered a “coach’s dream”, as noted by one Serie A journalist. He is hard-working and diligent, but we might be approaching the right time for him to take his leave.
This summer, as Liverpool pushed to sign Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi, Gomez’s name was put forth as a potential makeweight. It didn’t come to pass.
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The fact of the matter is this: Gomez doesn’t play a prominent role for Liverpool; he has only started three top-flight matches this term and is currently out injured. AC Milan have since come sniffing, with Italian sources claiming a January move to Serie A could be in the pipeline for the Premier League veteran.
Gomez, who pockets £85k per week, is Liverpool’s longest-serving first-teamer, but his opportunities over the past few years have been limited, and given that he has flirted with a departure from Anfield since Slot’s arrival, perhaps cashing in might be a good idea, especially when considering he is in the penultimate year of his deal.
Liverpool aren’t likely to part ways with either Chiesa or Gomez before the end of the season, but FSG are ready to polish the squad once again, and cutting ties with Gomez after so many years might be the ruthless decision needed to breathe fresh life into a backline that has undergone minimal transformation for quite a few years.
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