Arne Slot insisted his Liverpool team selection in the Carabao Cup defeat was about protecting key players, like Alexander Isak, from injury.

Liverpool’s bad run of form extended to a sixth defeat in seven games when Crystal Palace ran out 3-0 winners at Anfield on Wednesday.

Slot rotated his starting XI with 10 changes from their most recent Premier League match against Brentford. Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk were notably absent from the squad.

“Everybody can have [an] opinion about it, but with the squad we have — maybe 15, 16 first-team players available — this is the choice I’ve made,” Slot told Sky Sports.

“It’s not of Liverpool’s standards to lose five out of six, or six out of seven.

“Last time we played Southampton here in the League Cup, Giovanni Leoni got injured. We don’t have such a big squad as people might tell. There was so much focus on the amount of money we spent.

“People all of a sudden think we have 25 players available. But we mainly have 20 players then we have four injuries.

“I only have one right full-back, Conor Bradley, as an example. Every time I had to play him twice in three days or three times in seven days [last season] I had to take him off with a hamstring injury or something else.

“Are you willing to take that risk with such a big week coming up?

“Last time I played a player that wasn’t fully prepared — we thought he was prepared but it was the first time — Isak, he got injured.

“Last time we played Southampton Leoni was injured and it was a red card for Hugo Ekitike. Those are the things we can’t use with a big week coming up.

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“But there’s always a choice. What if I had played Virgil and [Ibrahima Konate], for example, if one of them got injured people would have said ‘what a stupid choice!’

“And also with [the key players] it was very difficult for us, for our starters to beat Palace because it’s not the first time we lose against them.”

Liverpool play Aston Villa on Saturday in the Premier League at Anfield. They also face Real Madrid and Manchester City before the international break.

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Flamengo is into the Copa Libertadores final after salvaging a scoreless draw against Racing Club on Wednesday in the second leg of their semifinal series.

The Brazilian club managed to hold on to the 1-0 lead it took in the first leg, and will be aiming to win the prestigious South American soccer tournament for the fourth time.

Flamengo won the Copa Libertadores in 1981, 2019 and 2022. Another win for Flamengo would give Brazil an eighth title in the past nine editions of the tournament.

The final is scheduled for Nov. 29 in estadio Monumental in Lima, Peru.

Flamengo held on to clinch a final spot despite playing most of the second half with 10 men after Gonzalo Plata was sent off in the 56th minute.

Ecuador’s Liga de Quito has a 3-0 lead over Brazil’s Palmeiras in the other semifinal series.