"What did he do to you Arne?", "Should be starting" - Liverpool fans react as 27-year-old star left out of XI for Chelsea clash

Liverpool fans have taken to social media to react to head coach Arne Slot's decision to leave Luis Diaz out of the starting lineup against Chelsea. The Reds have invited the Blues to Anfield today (October 20) for their first Premier League match after the October international break.

With Manchester City currently at the top of the Premier League table, the Reds know that a win will ensure they can overtake the Cityzens. However, they will have to take on the Blues without the help of Luis Diaz in the starting lineup. Instead, Arne Slot has opted for Cody Gakpo to start on the left side of the attack, rather than the Colombian.

Diaz, who is on the bench, has had a superb run of form in the Premier League this season. He has started six games out of seven, scoring five goals and providing an assist. Gakpo, in comparison, has had two goals and two assists in 12 appearances across all competitions.

Diaz's stats make the 27-year-old a valuable asset for Liverpool, and the fans are naturally not pleased that he will start on the bench against Chelsea. They went online to post comments like these on X:

"What did Diaz do to you Arne?" a fan asked.

"Personally wouldn't have picked Gakpo for Diaz especially as James hammies are made of cheesestrings and Diaz has him up the wall," another fan placed themselves in the manager's shoes.

"Diaz should be starting." a fan said.

"Slot? I can't imagine Diaz not here," another fan added.

"idk i wouldve had diaz instead of gakpo i think it works better and macca instead of jones😭 it might be good for yall!" another fan admitted.

"Playing Gakpo ahead of Diaz against a returning Reece James is a criminal decision by Slot. Diaz would run that boy ragged." this fan was unhappy.

Arne Slot reflects to how Liverpool have performed under his leadership ahead of Chelsea clash

Liverpool boss Arne Slot has reflected on how the Reds have performed under his leadership at Anfield. He spoke on Sky Sports ahead of their match against Chelsea, saying:

"It's been a good start, let that be clear. There was only one game we weren't happy with, and that was of course the Nottingham Forest game.

"All the other ones I think we deserved to get the result we got, although maybe in an ideal world the difference between us and the other team would have been a bit bigger..."

Liverpool were at the top of the Premier League by the start of the October international break. However, a 2-1 win for Manchester City over Wolverhampton Wanderers pushed the Reds down.

Arne Slot took over the reins at Anfield after Jurgen Klopp resigned at the end of last season. The legendary German manager won eight trophies during his nine-year spell on Merseyside. Slot will hope that, in time, he can impact the Reds in a similar manner. The Dutch head coach notably enjoyed a successful three-year stint at Feyenoord, where he won the Eredivisie and the KNVB Cup, before joining Liverpool.