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While Trent Alexander-Arnold was subsequently struck down with a minor thigh injury, the Reds’ hand remains most strong.

Six points clear at the top of the Premier League, through to the Champions League round-of-16 and topping the inaugural league phase and contesting a League Cup semi-final and FA Cup fourth round tie in the forthcoming days, Slot’s side are very much operating in a position of strength.

While some supporters might have liked to see Liverpool add to their ranks from such a position, evidently the stance at Anfield was a case of, ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’

Yet the Reds were not alone.

From the 20 Premier League sides, they were one of six not to add to their squad in January.

Such a hexet is made up of all of the current top four - though Nottingham Forest signed Tyler Bindon on deadline day before loaning him back to Reading for the rest of the season - Newcastle United and Fulham.

Consequently, Man City were the only side in the Premier League top six to add to their ranks mid-season.

Meanwhile, it is the second-highest spend in a winter window ever, behind Chelsea who spent £275m in January 2023.

Currently 15 points behind Liverpool - having been thrashed 5-1 by Arsenal in their last outing - and facing a Champions League knockout phase play-off against Real Madrid after only just scraping through the league phase, City’s outlay is no surprise.

Pep Guardiola’s side have endured a dismal first half of the season and face a battle to qualify for next season’s Champions League, with their hopes of defending their Premier League crown long since extinguished.

While City had little choice but to twist and add to their ranks in January as a result, the four sides above them (Liverpool, Arsenal, Forest and Chelsea) were seemingly all content to stick with the hands already at their disposal, given their successful campaigns so far.

That was certainly the case for Slot and the Reds, with the Dutchman again reiterating his faith in his current ranks last week.

But such failure is hardly as catastrophic as it could have been if competing at the other end of the table.

With the Premier League title-race seemingly now a two-horse race between Liverpool and Arsenal, it is certainly a plus for the Reds that Mikel Arteta’s squad also remains unchanged

There will be no shot in the arm at the Emirates as they continue to challenge Slot's men with the ranks they already had at their disposal.

For all the talk of the Gunners’ injury woes this season, they are currently only pencilled to be without long-term absentees Gabriel Jesus and Bukayo Saka when they return to Premier League action at home to Leicester City on February 15.

Liverpool travel to Everton before then on February 12 for their game-in-hand, with the true points difference between the Reds and the Gunners about to become clear
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