Liverpool boss Arne Slot on striving for perfection at Anfield, pondering in English and rebalancing threat vs reward

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot sat down with Sky Sports activities’ Pat Davison to debate his aspect’s wonderful begin to the season and dealing with Chelsea at Anfield on Tremendous Sunday:

Ten video games as Liverpool supervisor to this point, and I do know managers prefer to look ahead, not again behind the worldwide break. Simply to take a breath, how do you replicate on the start for you as Liverpool supervisor?

“It has been a great begin, let that be clear. There was just one recreation we weren’t proud of, and that was in fact the Nottingham Forest recreation.

“All the other ones I think we deserved to get the result we got, although maybe in an ideal world the difference between us and the other team would have been a bit bigger. So, every time we won I think we deserved it, but some games we deserved it more than others in terms of how big the gap was between us and the other team. So, it’s been a good start. Also in the Champions League it’s always nice to start off in the best possible way, and we hardly did that except for that one game.”

Has something significantly stunned you? Is there something that has caught you without warning by way of the league, by way of the membership?

“No, I do not assume I am the kind of person who will get stunned loads, as a result of earlier than I begin someplace, earlier than I begin with one thing, I make it possible for I do know what I can anticipate. So then usually you are not stunned that a lot. The optimistic factor is that individuals at all times discuss 9 out of ten at this second, however we additionally performed preseason and we had some superb outcomes over there as effectively.

“So, it didn’t come as a surprise for me that we started the season that well. The only thing that surprised me was I was a bit, I wouldn’t say stressed, but a bit like, OK, with all these players coming in that late, will we get off to a good start? How fit are they when they come back? We made the decision that most of them were two and a half weeks to three weeks off, and then starting together two weeks before the season start, that was a bit, hmm, let’s wait and see. But it paid off quite well.”

So, is the largest problem, or the largest change, the off-field stuff? I noticed you probably did an interview the place you had been speaking about talking a unique language all day, on daily basis. You know the way to teach a soccer staff – you would not be sat right here when you did not. So, is it these off-field bits which are the largest change for you?

“Yeah, for me off-field is the biggest change. The first time that I live abroad is the first time that I live separately from my family, from my children and my wife.”

And that is powerful, proper?

“That’s not the ideal world. You would love it to be different than that. But the good thing is that I’m in this building a lot. We work a lot. So there’s not a lot of time to sit at home and feel like I’m alone.

“We’re both going away to a Champions League recreation or making ready for the subsequent one. So that’s completely different. However yeah, the primary days, all new faces. As a result of when you go in the identical nation to a brand new membership, then you recognize the physio or all these workers members. their faces and generally you recognize their names. Generally you even work with them earlier than, when you change to a different membership. Now going to a unique nation, every thing is new. After which talking English the entire day, that does get some power out of you. This mixture of latest faces, new membership, new league.”

Do you assume in English but?

“Sometimes, sometimes I count in my head in English. But no, mostly I think in Dutch. But the good thing for me was that at my former club, Feyenoord, we also had a lot of foreign players. So all of the meetings, so the football talk was already a lot in English. So, talking about football is not that difficult for me.

“However speaking a few regular life, then generally it’s important to dig actually deep to give you the best phrases. You probably have a traditional dialog throughout lunch or throughout breakfast.”

In terms of your family, are you looking to move them over? Are your kids at ages where you think, no, they need to stay in school, stuff like that?

“I believe it relies on the way it will work out this 12 months. Each of them are doing their exams. So, it was not possible for them to return. I would not say not possible, however that would not be the best option to carry them over. And let’s have a look at the way it works out this 12 months for them, for me, and see how we are going to do issues subsequent 12 months. However to begin with, we now have to maintain on successful for me to maintain this job!”

One factor that is actually struck me listening to different interviews you have finished, you appear actually snug with the success that is come earlier than. Premier League historical past tells us that following an ideal supervisor, and let’s be sincere, that is what Jurgen Klopp was for this membership, is not simple. However you appear to form of put on the stress if there’s stress. You appear to put on that fairly comfortably.

“I think I do, yeah, but that has a lot to do with how much I trust the players that I took over from him as well. So, I wasn’t surprised because I saw a lot of games of them and I saw a lot of training sessions as well. So, I knew the quality they had. And the only thing I have influence on is working with them and preparing them in the best possible way.

“And that is what me and my workers attempt to do. After which if the sport begins, you’ll be able to regulate a bit, however it additionally relies on how effectively you probably did your work earlier than and the way a lot high quality your gamers have. And we now have a variety of high quality.

“So, yeah, then you go in with a lot of confidence into the game. If you prepare well, if you have quality, then the normal outcome is a lot of wins at a club like Liverpool.”

I really feel like possibly a much less skilled coach, or not even simply in soccer administration truly, a much less skilled chief goes in, needs to stamp their authority, change this – however I’ve seen a great deal of bits the place you have stated: ‘the tradition’s good, the foundations are good.’ I believe you appeared again at a few of Jurgen Klopp’s coaching. I really feel like it’s important to be snug in your individual pores and skin to make use of the nice issues. Does that make sense?

“Yeah, possibly it’s best to. However I believe it could be a extremely unusual resolution additionally if this membership had been so profitable with Jurgen and so many gamers are nonetheless there, then to vary every thing. I do not assume that may work out rather well.

“So, you just keep the things that you like a lot and implement a few ideas that you have yourself as well. But we’ve got experienced players who are used to a certain way of working. And then it’s sometimes also refreshing to change one or two things, but it would be stupid to change everything where they were successful with.”

By way of the issues you may have modified, you probably did an interview with Jamie Carragher the place you talked about simply rebalancing the risk-reward a bit of bit, not at all times enjoying the tough ball. Do you assume the gamers are adjusting to that little change?

“Sometimes better than in other moments. But that will always be the situation. You will never reach perfection. We are aiming for it, but we will never reach it. So sometimes a player sees a chance, feels that that is the moment to play the difficult ball. And if it happens, I’m the first one to say, well done. But if it doesn’t, you see me at the line like, why does he make this difficult choice? It stays a game for the players. And as much as they can, they have to make the right choices and the best possible executions.

“However I believe they cope fairly effectively, particularly if I take a look at the sport towards Ipswich, the place I believe we dominated possession and we managed the sport rather well by possession. However then the subsequent factor is to create extra possibilities if in case you have the ball a lot. We had a couple of, however for my part, not sufficient.

“So again, we don’t reach perfection, but we are far away from perfection at the moment.”

The aim of the additional components, is that just about defensive? It means you give away fewer transitions and if and while you do give it away, you are in higher form to defend the transition. Is that the pondering behind it?

“Yeah, but more than that, I think it’s also about if you had to run a lot to recover the ball, to get the ball back, and then if you lose it, immediately afterwards, I see players from my team with their head down thinking, s**t, we have to defend again, we have to run again.

“However the different staff will get a variety of confidence as a result of they instantly have the ball again once more. So, it is not solely this further cross that possibly provides you a greater relaxation defence, soccer can also be a psychological recreation. And if in case you have the ball loads, you’re feeling extra snug, you’re feeling higher.

“So, yeah, if this pass after transition immediately leads to a chance and the fans are loud, that also gives you the right energy, mental energy. But if you pick out a difficult ball without, so a lot of risk, without a lot of reward, if it finds your team-mate, then I think another choice would have been better.”

Lastly, I wished to ask you about a few people. You, within the final couple of days, watched various clips of Ryan Gravenberch, and it appears apparent with how constant he’s in possession, how effectively he breaks up play, that he’d be a great No 6.

I believe he did it a bit at Ajax, however you are the man who’s given him an everyday run at six. So what did you see that different individuals did not?

“He is very comfortable with the ball, and I think that’s what everybody saw, but not every manager. So, it’s a bit of a choice. You can bring a No 6 in that’s only really good without the ball – hard tackles and sliding – which every fan loves, and a lot of pundits love as well.

“Otherwise you look extra at what can he carry for us if we now have the ball, and I believe he may also help us loads with the ball. And he has a great deal with, however he isn’t a… The place would you examine him? He is not an N’Golo Kante, he is a Declan Rice, no matter you wish to give you. However he’s an excellent runner, so he has lengthy legs, he can carry on working, closing down traces. Is that the best way to say it?

“So, he is not the typical No 6 that is making sliding tackles of three or four or five metres, which a lot of fans also like to see. But if you play in a possession-based team, which he does, it’s a lot about keeping the ball, making the right decisions if you have the ball, and bringing the ball from the last line towards the forwards. It’s just a bit of how you look at a player.

“However ultimately, he additionally stunned me, not how snug he’s with the ball, but additionally how trustable he’s with out the ball. And I believe that’s one thing he picked up actually quick, or which was possibly already inside him, however individuals and me by no means noticed earlier than.”

And is Trent Alexander-Arnold, to pick one other particular person, one of the crucial distinctive gamers? Having that sort of firepower that far again within the pitch?

“Talking about risk and reward! And the choices he makes in which moment, then he’s one of the players that can make his decisions sometimes better, in my opinion. But to have a right full-back that is so special with the ball, yeah, that’s an extra quality Liverpool had for so many years, and I’m lucky enough to have that still, because how many full-backs create so many chances for their team?

“So, he ought to preserve bringing this threat to his recreation and in some moments discover different choices as effectively. However I even have to handle, for my part, how effectively he is defending at Liverpool in the previous couple of video games we have performed

“So, I see a player that is bringing his game further up, which was hardly possible because he was already that good, but I think he still does, and that’s a good thing.”