Jurgen Klopp faces Virgil van Dijk’s dilemma as Liverpool contemplate midfield overhaul

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Liverpool maintained their unbeaten start to the season with a tough clash against Premier League champions Chelsea on Saturday.

Mohamed Salah’s penalty kick was canceled for Kai Havertz’s opening match as the Reds came from behind to win a 1-1 draw with the 10-man guest team.

The international break means Liverpool now have to wait nearly two weeks until their next game at Leeds United in the Premier League.

Here we are looking at what changes Jurgen Klopp can make when his team is next.

READ MORE: Smoke rises from Virgil van Dijk as Anthony Taylor ignores Liverpool allegations

Turning center back?

Alisson Becker’s brilliant start to the season has cemented his position as the undisputed number one among the sticks, and he will be among those to stay on Merseyside during the international break due to quarantine issues.

Trent Alexander-Arnold was similarly distinguished at right-back and will be hoping to come out unscathed after England called him up for their next three World Cup qualifiers.

But elsewhere in the defense, there are questions to be answered.

Andy Robertson was less than his best on his debut of the season against Chelsea with Costas Tsimikas shining in his first two Premier League games in the Scottish absence.

The trip to Leeds is the first of seven games in 22 days as Liverpool escalates with the return of the Champions League and League Cup.

And while Virgil van Dijk and Joel Matip have proven themselves at the heart of the defence, Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez can anticipate minutes in the coming weeks with Island Road as their first potential opportunity.

Van Dijk’s playing time in particular will be closely watched as he is not far back after being sidelined for nearly 10 months.

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Midfield change awaits

While the engine room wasn’t exactly annoying, it didn’t perform at an optimal level against Chelsea.

Fabinho was strong enough on his return to the sixth round, but Jordan Henderson struggled to influence things as usual after turning left to accommodate Harvey Elliott the other side.

Naby Keita could consider himself unlucky to be dropped as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain kicked off the opener in Norwich City.

Klopp has options, with Thiago Alcantara awaiting the start of the first season and Curtis Jones yet to appear.

James Milner has missed his last two matches due to injury with the Reds, hoping he won’t face a long spell on the sidelines.

Firmino wait

Likewise, Liverpool are waiting for the extent of the hamstring problem that forced Roberto Firmino to an early exit against Chelsea, with the forward underwent a checkup on Sunday.

Like Allison and Fabinho, he was by no means going to travel for an international assignment this week.

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His replacement was Diogo Jota, and he will be poised to join Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane at the top three.

However, it was clear that Takumi Minamino remained on the bench in the second half while Divock Origi failed to make up the Tour’s 20-man squad for the second game in a row.

Of course, it remains to be seen if Origi or a new face in the squad is in two weeks’ time, with the transfer window closing on Tuesday night.

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