How Liverpool could line-up vs Chelsea as Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk decisions made

Liverpool will be looking to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League when they return to action next week - with Chelsea the visitors to Anfield

When the Premier League returns after the international break, Chelsea will make the trip to the north west to take on Liverpool. It will be first against fourth at Anfield with Enzo Maresca's side looing to continue their fine form.

Standing in their way will be Arne Slot's table-toppers who will be looking to continue their impressive start to the season, having maintained their top spot in the league with a victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park last weekend.

Since taking over as head coach this summer, Slot has secured six wins in seven top-flight games and nine victories in his first 10 matches across all competitions. But what sort of team could Chelsea come up against?

Despite potential changes to the team, Slot received positive news regarding Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah this week. Van Dijk, who was part of the Netherlands squad for the Nations League, was sent off in a draw with Hungary and will now return to Merseyside early due to a one-game suspension.

Meanwhile, Salah is also set to return to Liverpool after being withdrawn from the Egypt squad over pitch concerns for their match against Mauritania on Tuesday. Consequently, both Salah and Van Dijk will have extra recovery time ahead of the Chelsea clash in the Premier League next week.

Assuming fitness, Salah and Van Dijk are two of the first names on Slot's Liverpool team sheet. The pair have returned earlier than anticipated from international duty, giving the Reds' boss hope they'll be match-ready for the Chelsea clash at Anfield. However, Alisson Becker will not make the matchday squad.

READ MORE: Chelsea have already completed £85m three new signings for Enzo Maresca's future best starting XI

READ MORE: Jadon Sancho has major impact but one man really struggles - Ranking Chelsea's summer signings

Consequently, Caoimhin Kelleher is tipped to start in goal against Chelsea next weekend, with Vitezslav Jaros, who stepped in for Alisson against Palace, serving as Kelleher's backup while Alisson recovers.

In defence, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate and Andy Robertson are all away on international duty. Slot will be hoping each of the trio return unscathed to start alongside Van Dijk in the back four against Chelsea.

Midfield may see one alteration with Alexis Mac Alister's fitness still up in the air. The midfielder joined the Argentina squad but was absent from their World Cup qualifier against Venezuela earlier this week after potentially straining a muscle in the win over Palace.

If Mac Allister is ruled out, Slot may look to Curtis Jones to fill the midfield void alongside Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai. Harvey Elliott will also be eyeing the Chelsea clash as a chance to make his comeback from a long-term foot injury.

Fresh from international duty with Egypt, Salah is expected to reclaim his spot in Liverpool's starting XI this weekend. The remaining two forward positions will see Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez vying for a place.

Federico Chiesa could also make a return to the squad after sitting out Liverpool's last two games due to fitness concerns.

Join the football.london Chelsea WhatsApp community

Sign up to our Chelsea WhatsApp service and get all the latest breaking news and in-depth stories from football.london's dedicated Chelsea writers direct to your phone.

By signing up to this free service you will be the first to know the news from Stamford Bridge as it happens.

To join our Chelsea community, all you have to do is click this link to join and you're in!