There was a notable inclusion among the Liverpool substitutes’ bench for the Premier League fixture against Crystal Palace this afternoon.
Arne Slot has made two changes to his starting XI from the team which began last weekend’s Merseyside derby win, most notably a first top-flight start for the Reds for Freddie Woodman, with Alisson Becker and Giorgi Mamardashvili both ruled out through injury.
There’s plenty of high-level experience in reserve if the Dutchman needs it, with Ryan Gravenberch, Jeremie Frimpong, Federico Chiesa, Joe Gomez and Milos Kerkez all ready to be called upon. On the other end of the scale, there’s also two potential senior debutants.
Armin Pecsi is on the bench for the second weekend in a row, with the young Hungarian now the immediate go-to if, for any reason, Woodman doesn’t complete 90 minutes today.
Meanwhile, there’s a first-ever appearance in a Liverpool senior matchday squad for Will Wright, the teenage academy striker who was called up to first-team training earlier this week in the absence of Hugo Ekitike, who’s out for the next few months with a serious Achilles injury.
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What a day it could be for both youngsters, with the goalkeeper potentially being thrown in at the deep end just as Woodman was last Sunday when Mamardashvili went off injured, and the centre-forward possibly being deployed for an official Liverpool debut this afternoon.
Obviously the hope is that nothing untoward will happen with our starting goalkeeper which’d necessitate turning to the talented Pecsi, whose senior experience is confined entirely to appearances in his native Hungary.
However, in the admittedly improbable scenario of the Reds leading comfortably in the final few minutes, Slot might deem it a nice opportunity in which to grant Wright his debut for the Reds, made even better by the game being at Anfield.
The 18-year-old has fought back from a horrific injury of his own last autumn to impress for the under-21s and earn his place on the subs’ bench for Liverpool in the Premier League this afternoon.
If this is the day that he and/or Pecsi is handed an official LFC debut, it’ll be a very special occasion for either or both.
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