Federico Chiesa left Liverpool staff 'concerned' during match as mystery explained

staff were reportedly left 'concerned' by one of Federico Chiesa's first performances for the club this season. The Italian has struggled for minutes since joining the Reds but will be keen to feature more prominently before the campaign draws to a close.

Chiesa was 's only signing of the summer before heading into this season, but he has made just four appearances since touching down in England - featuring more prominently as an impact substitute in cup competitions.

With Liverpool looking in need of rotation at stages this season, questions have been raised about Chiesa's lack of minutes - especially with several players struggling to fulfil the No. 9 role in Slot's system.

The reason for his absences may now have been uncovered. According to the , Chiesa was not 'anywhere close' to being match fit during the first half of the season.

The ex-Juventus' star's performance in the against then raised eyebrows among staff at Anfield, with coaches being left 'concerned' by how he struggled to make any sort of impact on the match.

Chiesa's display was ruled 'not good enough' and it significantly dented his chances of featuring during the matches that followed. His cameos eventually became more exciting though, and he provided the Reds with a glimmer of hope in the final with what ultimately proved to be a late consolation goal against Newcastle.

The versatile winger's future on Merseyside is 'uncertain', though the No. 14 is during the final few weeks of this season now that the Reds have secured Premier League glory.

If allowed to move on this summer, just 12 months after finally securing his long-awaited move to England, then Liverpool will certainly need to bring in a replacement given the other potential departures in the offing, including Luis Diaz, Harvey Elliott, Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota.

The Reds have been heavily linked with bringing in a host of attacking reinforcements, with Bryan Mbeumo and Antoine Semenyo among those admired. A natural striker is also on the shopping list at Anfield, though it remains to be seen whether the club have the available finances to table an offer for the highly sought-after Alexander Isak.