"He's here to win", "The time is now" - Liverpool fans excited to see Arne Slot name surprise star in starting XI vs Brighton

Liverpool fans are conveying their delight on X after Arne Slot included Federico Chiesa in the starting XI to face Brighton & Hove Albion. The two sides are set to face each other in the Premier League at the Falmer Stadium later tonight (Monday, May 19).

Alisson Becker starts in goal for Liverpool. Conor Bradley, Ibrahima Konate, Jarell Quansah, and Kostas Tsimikas make up the defense. The midfield comprises of Ryan Gravenberch, Harvey Elliott, and Dominik Szoboszlai. Federico Chiesa, Mohamed Salah, and Cody Gakpo start up front to complete the starting XI.

Chiesa has struggled for game time under Arne Slot since joining the Reds from Juventus last summer. The Italy international missed 14 games due to a muscle injury in the first half of the season, causing him to fall down the pecking order.

The 27-year-old has been limited to just 13 appearances across all competitions this season, playing a total of 403 minutes. Despite this, Chiesa has scored two goals and provided two assists and will be aiming to make an impact against Brighton in his first Premier League start of the campaign.

One Liverpool fan posted:

"FEDERICO HE'S HERE TO WIN"

Another fan tweeted:

"OMG, The time is now. Please don't mess this up Fede. Please"

Other fans reacted below:

"Chiesa will be a player to look forward to. Impressive game upfront," one fan commented

"Finally, Chiesa from start!!!! I'm really excited over this. Hope he shows what he is made of, cuz the lad can obviously play some fantastic football," another added

"CHIESA UP TOP! 🇮🇹 Let’s go, Reds! Time to dominate Brighton!" one fan typed

"Eating lasagne and garlic bread tonight, to celebrate Chiesa starting," another chimed in

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"How focused will they be here?" - Chris Sutton makes bold scoreline prediction for Brighton vs Liverpool PL clash

BBC Sport columnist Chris Sutton has backed Brighton & Hove Albion to defeat Liverpool 2-1 in their upcoming Premier League fixture. Sutton also questioned the Reds' focus after they recently secured their 20th top-flight league title.

Arne Slot's side have been excellent this season, securing 83 points from 36 games. However, they have been far from their best since winning the Premier League title and have dropped points in their last two games. Meanwhile, Brighton are ninth in the table with 55 points, and have won two out of their last three games.

Sutton wrote (via BBC Sport):

"It's so hard to make a prediction for this game because I have no idea what the Liverpool line-up will look like, or what their mindset will be."

"Arne Slot's side will lift the Premier League trophy at Anfield after their final game of the season against Crystal Palace next weekend. Their work is done, and they have got that party to look forward to, so how focused will they be here?"

He added:

"As things stand, Brighton do have something to play for because eighth place will get them in the Europa Conference League, if Manchester City win the FA Cup. The Seagulls played really well at Wolves last week, and fully deserved their win."

"They gave Liverpool a good game at Anfield earlier in the season, when they led 1-0 at half-time but lost 2-1, and if Slot picks a weakened team then they are good enough to take advantage."

The Reds will be confident of securing a result against Brighton, having won their last two league games against them. However, the Seagulls notably lost just once in their previous seven games beforehand, winning two and drawing four.