Joe McConnell
Liverpool’s new manager Arne Slot has spoken about a range of topics ahead of his debut as Reds manager at Ipswich Town: transfers (or lack thereof), player contracts, why the team is as strong as last season and preparing for an “intense” Premier League – all of which the Dutchman touched on in his pre-match press conference.
Slot will take the away dugout at Portman Road on Saturday lunchtime as Liverpool kick off their 2024/25 top-flight campaign against newly promoted Ipswich. The man who replaced Jurgen Klopp is aiming to become the first Reds manager in the Premier League era to win his first game in charge of the club.
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Vscek’ Anton Toloui analyses Liverpool’s pre-season win over Real Betis and explains what style to expect from Arne Slot.
Slot’s side have had an encouraging pre-season, with impressive wins against Arsenal and Manchester United during their summer tour of the United States, but those spectacular victories will count for nothing if they slip up in their opening game in East Anglia.
Unsurprisingly, the 45-year-old was quizzed on the club’s lack of transfer activity so far this summer (Liverpool are the only Premier League side not to have signed any players during the off-season) and, in particular, their failure to persuade holding midfielder Martin Zubimendi to leave Real Sociedad for Anfield.
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Liverpool midfielder Harvey Elliott believes the club’s new manager, Arne Slot, has the right mentality to win trophies and bring success to the club.
Meanwhile, Slot also answered questions about the futures of captain Virgil van Dijk, vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah, whose contracts expire at the end of the season, before turning his attention to the challenge of a trip to Portman Road this weekend…
“It’s not easy to find players to strengthen the team”
Slot said he was satisfied with the team he inherited from his predecessor Jurgen Klopp:
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The Good Morning Transfers panel discusses how Liverpool could tackle this season after failing to sign new players.
“I have said many times that our team is really strong and it is not easy to find players who can help us or strengthen the team.
“Zubimendi was one of them, to be honest, but he decided not to come. We move forward with what we have. We are in a good position.
“At the bottom Richard [Hughes] He is trying to strengthen the team as much as he can, unfortunately Zubimendi has decided not to come.
“He made every effort and tried everything to get him, but if a player doesn’t want to come, it’s obvious he won’t come.”
“I don’t understand the argument that we are weaker this season”
Slot insisted his squad had not been weakened by a lack of signings this summer:
“I don’t understand that reasoning. If you don’t strengthen the team, you become weaker?
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Vscek’ Danyal Khan analyses why Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi won’t join Arne Slot’s Liverpool.
“It’s a bit strange because normally you either stay the same or, I firmly believe, on the training pitch you can help players and teams improve.
“That’s what’s happened here in recent years. The training camp has really helped the team improve.
“Maybe what you mean is that if the clubs around you strengthen their squads then maybe they become better, but it’s not always true that if you bring in new players the team becomes stronger.”
“If you keep bringing in players, sometimes the energy in the group drops”
Slot said that signings will only be made if they can improve the team and, while the search continues, he believes he can bring out the best in the current group:
“There’s always talk of transfers, but it’s positive that we’ve kept our players.
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Liverpool CEO Billy Hogan explains why he believes Arne Slot is the right man for the manager role and explains why there has been no transfer news at the club this summer.
“I also think that in general every player in the team needs to have a certain perspective on playing time and if you keep bringing players in, sometimes the energy in the group also drops.
“We are in a good position at the moment: Jurgen left the team in a good position and we are trying to build on it.
“Last season they won a trophy with this team, we are aiming for the same result this season. It will not be easy because there are many strong teams in the Premier League who have strengthened their squads, but we are looking forward to the challenge.”
“Trent is capable of playing both positions very well”
Slot said that Alexander-Arnold was able to play both as a right-back and as a midfielder:
Alexander-Arnold can play both right-back and midfielder, says Slot
“A position is always linked to the team. Trent has been known as a right-back all his life and as a midfielder as a young man.
“We sometimes see him playing in midfield and in midfield at the European Championships, so he is capable of playing very well in both positions, so it’s up to me to decide.”
“This is not the place to talk about contracts”
However, Slot was very reserved when it came to discussing the futures of Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk and Salah:
“I don’t think this is the right place to talk about contracts, but I can assure you that [Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk and Salah] I’m on the team tomorrow [Saturday].”
“Diaz’s future is with us”
Slot was adamant that, despite recent reports linking Luis Diaz with a move to Manchester City or Barcelona this summer, the Colombian striker will remain at Anfield this season:
Slot expects striker Luis Diaz to stay at Liverpool this season
“When I entered, Vscek was on the screen and I asked, “Is the whole day going to be just about talking about football?!”
“It doesn’t surprise me that I hear speculation about [Luis] Diaz. Is there anyone from the future we don’t talk about?
“His future is with us. I really like what I’ve seen. He’s had a big impact on Liverpool and I hope he has one next season.”
“We need to get Nunez into more scoring positions”
Enter what your team needs to do to help Darwin Nunez score more goals this season:
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Jamie Carragher criticised Darwin Nunez’s finish as the Uruguayan striker squandered a golden opportunity against Everton during Liverpool’s 2-0 Merseyside derby defeat.
“We’ll bring it [Nunez] as much as possible in scoring positions [to help him score more goals this season].
“Everyone benefits from the team’s performance. If everyone can get the attackers into dangerous positions, then those players will score goals.
“We scored goals on smaller occasions in pre-season too, so it’s up to us to bring Darwin or Diogo [Jota]or other attackers in promising positions.
“Then he too, like the others, will score goals…”
“I’ve been told that every Premier League game is intense!”
Slot on what to expect from his first season as a Premier League manager:
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Watch the best of Arne Slot’s first press conference for Liverpool as the Dutchman begins the task of replacing Jurgen Klopp.
“For me the pre-season games had a big meaning, because they were important to prepare the team for the Premier League.
“Now we start against a promoted team who have done so well under their coach, so now we prepare.
“It’s no more difficult than preparing for a team that has been in the Premier League for 22 years, we’ve seen their games last season and pre-season.
“It’s true that a newly promoted club has a lot of positivity, but everyone told me that every game in the Premier League is intense and that’s what we expect tomorrow too.
“A promoted team that has only had positive aspects can’t wait to get started, but we are waiting for it too.”
