Arne Slot has already CONFIRMED who starts against Everton

One Liverpool star sounds absolutely certain to start for the Reds against Everton on Saturday. Their first Merseyside derby.

Liverpool host Everton on Saturday in the season's first Merseyside derby. The Reds aim to continue their 100 per cent record in all competitions - the only team in the Premier League to hold such a record.

Of course, they'll hope that they could have their first routine win of the campaign. Every result has required late drama thus far but admittedly, we can't see that changing here.

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Liverpool vs Everton is never particularly simple, even if the Reds boast an incredible record over the last 20 years. The Toffees, who have started the campaign well, will be out to get something from Anfield.

What makes this one extra interesting, though, is that Liverpool will have several superstars playing in their first ever Merseyside derby. It's one that can come as a shock to some players, given this is the fixture with more red cards than any other.

It's typically a much more physical game and rarely straightforward. Arne Slot, then, has to judge who's ready for this one from the get-go.

One new star, however, appears absolutely certain to start at Anfield.

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Liverpool's centre-forward vs Everton

Slot has a massive decision in just about every fixture this season. He's got to choose his centre-forward and that means picking between Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitiké.

Both are elite forwards, even if Isak is the more proven at the top level. Still, it sounds as though Ekitiké is near-certain to start against Everton.

Slot himself warned ahead of the Burnley match that they'll need to be careful with Isak. It'll take time to get him up to speed.

“If he plays 45 on Wednesday [vs Atlético Madrid], don’t expect to play 45 or more on Saturday because his body is not prepared for that, in our opinion," said Slot.

Well, Isak played comfortably more than 45 minutes in midweek. The boss's own words then point to Ekitiké getting the nod in the derby, with the Swede almost certainly limited to a second-half substitution.

Still, what a weapon to have from the bench. Liverpool can't really go wrong with their striker options, honestly, and Slot's got an incredible luxury in splitting time between the two.

Or maybe, down the line, playing both.

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