Liverpool star in danger of national team exile as Arne Slot admits 'big disappointment'

Liverpool star Federico Chiesa has been warned he faces being left out of Italy’s national team in the future if he is unable to convince Arne Slot he is worthy of regular game time.

The 27-year-old was signed in a late £12.5million deal from Juventus this summer, which was viewed by many to be a bargain fee and way below his true market value.

But nearly two months down the line, the reality is that his Anfield career is yet to take off. His first weeks on Merseyside were interrupted by fitness issues and he has missed the last two matches with an unspecified injury.

Chiesa has only managed 78 minutes in total for the Reds, coming on as a late substitute against AC Milan in the Champions League and getting a short cameo against Bournemouth.

His last appearance came back on September 25 when he made his full debut in the 5-1 rout of West Ham, with Chiesa grabbing an assist before he was substituted on the hour mark.

When asked about Chiesa’s situation at Liverpool and whether he would be called up, Italy coach Luciano Spalletti told the winger he needs to be making an impact at club level to earn a place in the Azzurri squad.

“Before we started with different choices, now we have relied a bit more on talent, on players who run up 70 metres,” Spalletti told DAZN. “It is clear that these specialist players must do it at a level that is the basis for building at a team level. If they do it below that level it becomes difficult for the team.”

Spalletti is adamant Chiesa made the right decision to leave Italy behind despite his initial struggles at Anfield, claiming it is “something everyone should do” and pointed to how Riccardo Calafiori and Gianluigi Donnarumma have thrived outside of Serie A.

But his point made it somewhat clear that Chiesa cannot afford to spend time out of the team. That will be a cause of concern for the ex-Juventus man, as there isn’t much evidence to suggest Slot will change his mind over team selection with Mohamed Salah scoring and Luis Diaz also in form.

Chiesa was left out of the squad for their 2-2 draw with Arsenal on Sunday and the Dutchman admitted he had some sympathy for Chiesa as he tries to catch up on match fitness.

“He missed a complete pre-season, I said this many times, and going to a league where the intensity might even be higher than the Italian league” Slot said before their win over RB Leipziglast week. “We just faced the two Italian teams [AC Milan and Bologna] so I can say this now.

“So that makes it difficult for him to make the step towards the intensity levels the rest of the team is at at the moment.

“That has not so much to do with the Italian league or the Premier League, that has more to do with him missing a complete pre-season and that is so difficult for every player – when the games are constantly there – to build them up towards the levels we are at.

“So, difficult to say, but it’s a big disappointment for him that he is going in and out of the training sessions all the time. I feel sorry for him.”

One possible opportunity could be their clash with Brighton on Wednesday in the Carabao Cup. But another omission for Chiesa would spell trouble ahead for the forward as his struggles show no sign of abating on Merseyside.