If Liverpool become Premier League champions this season, there will be no shortage of people to thank.

Head coach Arne Slot will warrant plenty of credit for the sensational job he has done since arriving from Feyenoord in the summer.

Across his three seasons in Rotterdam, Feyenoord's player availability levels were above 90%, with the Dutchman having introduced a number of innovations at the club to try and keep his squad in good shape.

"When Slot came in, the team weren't used to playing three matches a week, so in preseason he arranged a lot of friendly games for the players," said Sinclair Bishop, who covers Feyenoord extensively for ESPN Netherlands.

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"Some people said it would be dangerous because it put players at risk of injury, but Slot said the games would help create a lot of energy and prepare the team for the intensity of the season, playing in Europe and the Dutch Cup as well as the Eredivisie.

Feyenoord didn't play a lot of games in preseason and, when they did play, the team would often be changed around so players didn't get used to playing every three days.

"Under Slot, Feyenoord were one of the fittest teams in the Netherlands and they scored a lot of goals late on in games because they were in such good shape.

Newcastle

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Players making "a lot of effort" to stay fit

Of the 24 players to have featured for Liverpool in the Premier League this season, 11 have suffered an injury that have ruled them out of at least one league match.

Those absences combine to equal a total of 68 league games missed this term.

Compare that to Arsenal, who have also used 24 players in the top flight this season, and the contrast is stark, with 18 separate players combining to miss a total of 125 league games.

Manchester City, meanwhile, have used 27 players, with 14 players combining to miss 112 league games.

Liverpool have also succeeded in keeping their most important players fit, with Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Ryan Gravenberch among those to have featured in every Premier League match this season -- though goalkeeper Alisson and striker Diogo Jota have both been sidelined for significant spells.

"Ultimately, you want to be keeping those high-profile players fit and available," Dinnery says.
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