Arne Slot handed major injury blow as Liverpool star tears his ACL

It's a huge setback for the Reds

Liverpool began their Carabao Cup campaign with a hard fought 2-1 victory over Southampton last night, which — other than a red card and suspension for Hugo Ekitike — appeared at the time to have gone off without much of a hitch.

It has been since revealed however that one of the players that made his debut in last night's clash has picked up a potentially season defining injury.

18 + Be Gamble Aware

According to the renowned Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, Liverpool's new signing Giovanni Leoni has torn his ACL and faces a spell of several months of recovery.

Leoni joined Liverpool from Serie A side Parma for £26 million in August.

He has also previously played for Sampdoria in Italy, and left the European nation as one of most highly regarded defenders in the market.

The loss of Leoni for much of this season is a major blow for Arne Slot.

Liverpool are already lacking in cover in defensive areas after failing to secure a deal for Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi on deadline day.

The Reds take on Crystal Palace this weekend where they will hope to extend their 100% record to six matches.

The Eagles are the only team to have beaten Liverpool so far this season, which took place during the Community Shield at Wembley in August.