The international break will seem somewhat longer than a fortnight for Liverpool supporters following another setback in the Premier League. The Reds suffered a 2-1 defeat at Brighton on Saturday, marking their remarkable tenth league loss of the campaign.
While the reigning league champions remain in contention for Champions League qualification for next term, they now trail fourth-placed Aston Villa by five points, who returned to winning form against West Ham at the weekend.
With the likes of Everton, Manchester United, Chelsea, Brentford and Villa still to face in their remaining seven league fixtures, Liverpool will need to reverse their fortunes rapidly if they wish to compete in Europe's elite competition.
Ahead of the fortnight's respite for Reds supporters, we examine John W. Henry's return to social media and Federico Chiesa's statement following his international comeback.
The Liverpool owner is not known for social media activity, but the 76-year-old billionaire posted on the X platform for the first time in five years to respond to a Boston Globe reporter - the newspaper Henry has controlled since 2014.
Dan Shaughnessy, a Boston Red Sox columnist for the publication, reversed his criticism of NESN, a television network that is 80 per cent controlled by Fenway Sports Group, after acknowledging he had misinterpreted a story.
In response to the reporter's post, Henry simply wrote: "Historic." Whilst the meaning behind the businessman's comment remains unclear, it's possible he was making light of the reporter's apparent change of position.
Henry's wife, Linda Pizzuti, is an active social media user, and last October, she shared a post on Instagram to commemorate the 15-year milestone of FSG's ownership at Liverpool. Part of her message read: "My first tweet about LFC 15 years ago was asking this amazing community about what songs I needed to learn for my first trip to Anfield.
"In our 15 years together, we have shared our own painful moments, epic comebacks, heart-breaking tragedies and new historic triumphs. We made new legends, and added new stories to the historic lore of this world-famous club. And we collected some lovely new silver of all shapes and sizes."
Federico Chiesa has endured a difficult period since his transfer to Liverpool, and matters show no signs of improvement after he withdrew from the Italy squad mere days following his call-up to the national team for the first time in nearly two years.
The 29-year-old had been selected by Gennaro Gattuso for the World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland on Thursday and a potential playoff final fixture against the victors of Wales and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
However, the winger has pulled out of the squad owing to fitness issues, which have hindered his career progression since his transfer to Anfield in 2024. The Italian FA stated: "Federico Chiesa was assessed on arrival at the Federal Technical Centre and deemed unavailable for the next two matches.
Federico Chiesa hasn't played for Italy since Euro 2024
"In agreement with his club, he has left the squad. Bologna winger Nicolò Cambiaghi has been called up as his replacement." Chiesa had previously instructed Gattuso not to include him unless he was "100 per cent".
The forward has not yet represented his nation since his £10million switch to the Reds from Juventus, with his most recent appearances for Italy occurring at Euro 2024.
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