'Special' player should be benched v Southampton in Arne Slot's toughest decision yet at Liverpool - opinion

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The international break is finally over and Liverpool are set to return to action on Sunday as they travel to St Mary’s to take on Southampton.

The Reds lead the way in the Premier League and are five points clear of Manchester City, who prepare to face in just over a week.

Arne Slot hasn’t done much wrong at Anfield so far and will look to keep up the winning momentum, having won 15 of his first 17 games in charge of the club.

That said, the Liverpool boss is set to make a decision in the coming days that could give him a headache or two.

Liverpool should play Caoimhin Kelleher over Alisson Becker vs Southampton

Alisson Becker hasn’t featured for Liverpool since being substituted in their 1-0 win against Crystal Palace with a hamstring injury.

While Vitezslav Jaros came on for his Premier League debut that day, Caoimhin Kelleher has deputised for him between the sticks and has done a superb job, to say the least.

Read More:Tony Cascarino shares whether he thinks Liverpool should bench Caoimhin Kelleher when Alisson Becker returns

However, Alisson is in contention to play against Southampton after recovering from his injury, leaving Slot with a tough decision to make.

Granted, the Brazilian is arguably one of the best goalkeepers in world football and should get his spot back in the team eventually, but the trip to St Mary’s could come too soon for him.

With Real Madrid and Manchester City set to visit Anfield in the next ten days, it remains to be seen what Slot does in terms of his goalkeeping options.

What has Slot said about his goalkeeping options?

Slot referred to Alisson as a ‘special’ player and made it abundantly clear before the international break that the Brazilian is his first-choice goalkeeper.

"First of all, Alisson needs to become fit and I've always been quite clear and that's always been the position of Alisson that he is, and will be, our first goalkeeper if he is fit," said the Dutchman after the Reds' 2-0 win against Aston Villa.

"But, therefore, he first needs to be fit, but Caoimhin has done outstanding last season and this season again as well. But the moment Alisson will be fit, he will be our first goalkeeper."

The writing is on the wall for Kelleher, but whether or not he loses his place in the team against Southampton or Real Madrid, however, remains to be seen.