- 2 days ago
Liverpool boss Arne Slot on the situation surrounding Mo Salah and the challenge of facing Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League
AXA Training Centre, Liverpool, UK
AXA Training Centre, Liverpool, UK
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00:00I am, thank you. How are you? Not in the bar anymore.
00:08Thanks for that. Live on Sky Sports.
00:14Obviously, Arno, while you're in Milan, Mo posted a picture of himself training below.
00:20What's the situation this weekend? Will he be involved?
00:23If not, does that mean he's playing his last game for Liverpool?
00:26I will have a conversation with Mo this morning.
00:31The outcome of that conversation determines how it will look tomorrow.
00:37What do you need from him to resolve this situation?
00:40What I need is a conversation with him.
00:43I think the next time I speak about Mo, I should be with him.
00:49Not in here, but you can keep on trying.
00:53But there's not much more to say about it than I speak to him today.
00:57Like I said, the outcome of that conversation determines how things will look tomorrow.
01:04Can I just ask, is part of the issue asking him to do more defensively?
01:09You can try it in multiple ways, but I think I just said that the next time I speak about him, I should be with him.
01:23We've spoken a lot in the last week after the Sunderland game.
01:28I think there have been a lot of conversations between his representatives and ours,
01:34our representatives and him, between him and me after the Sunderland game.
01:40And today I will speak to him again.
01:43Have you had an apology, or do you need an apology?
01:46Probably the last one.
01:48Normally I would say you've had your three questions, I think this is the fourth or the fifth.
01:53Same answer again.
01:56You can throw one more in then, it's back to the game,
02:03but you are unbeaten in four now as well,
02:06so I'm just wondering what platform you've given yourselves to build on that?
02:09No, I think apart from being unbeaten,
02:14I think we've shown that we have been a team in the last four games
02:18that were indeed difficult to beat, that were difficult to create chances against us.
02:24The team worked really hard, put a lot of effort in.
02:29We've been again a bit unlucky in the results,
02:34but showed great resilience.
02:37Four games in ten days with not a lot of players available
02:41is, I think, a compliment to the players that were available,
02:47how they managed to get, first of all, some results,
02:52and second of all, the work rate they've put in.
02:55Over those last four games,
02:59it's pretty much coincided with Alisson's return into the team,
03:03how much of an impact has that had on everything?
03:07Every time a player is available again,
03:11that alone a player that is so good as he is, that's helpful,
03:15but I think Georgie did a great job as well when he wasn't there.
03:19I don't think Georgie or Alisson have had a lot to do in general in games,
03:26because we hardly conceded a chance.
03:29In most games that we've played, not all of them,
03:32but I think 90% of the games we've hardly conceded a chance.
03:36So, yeah, it's always helpful when a player of his quality is back,
03:40but I want to emphasise on the fact that Georgie did a good job as well.
03:43But it's nice to have him back, yeah.
03:48Can I ask you a question about team news as well?
03:50Yes, of course.
03:51How's everybody looking?
03:53Anybody coming back, anybody not available now?
03:55Federico is not ill anymore.
03:58He trained yesterday and he will train today again,
04:01so I assume he's ready to be in the squad tomorrow again.
04:05Can I just check with Endo and Cody about how they're doing and what they're doing?
04:11Yeah, it's going to be weeks.
04:13What are their injuries?
04:15With Kessel, with Cody it's a muscle injury, that's Kessel.
04:20Cody is a muscle injury and Wata is an ankle injury.
04:27Just one on your home form recently.
04:30Obviously Liverpool's home form last season and in recent years has been pretty impeccable.
04:34In the last five in the league it's two wins, two defeats and a draw.
04:37Are you finding it difficult to play at home at the moment
04:41and with the form that there's been in and 60,000 expected fans,
04:44I just wonder what that impact is having on your home performances at the moment?
04:48I could completely understand this question,
04:51if our away form would have been outstanding,
04:53but I don't think that's the situation as well.
04:56I think we've struggled at home and away from home far too many times than we would like.
05:02And there are reasons for that which I think I've spoken about,
05:07everybody has spoken about many times,
05:10but never enough reasons to lose so many times.
05:13So I don't see the relation between home games and our results,
05:19I see it in all the other things I've said recently,
05:24why we've dropped points or lost games.
05:27You've talked about how teams have targeted you in certain ways
05:30and played certain tactics against you this season.
05:33I just wonder if you expect Brighton to go down a similar route
05:36or what kind of threat do you expect them to pose?
05:39Yeah, I've said, not only, I've said this, it's so clear and obvious every time.
05:44Sometimes I see a photo that some pundits have shown this,
05:50that it's so obvious that if you see the league,
05:53I think the league has become much more direct,
05:55but then there's the league and then there's Liverpool,
05:57how teams play against us in terms of how direct they play.
06:00That's, I think, a nicer word than a long ball.
06:05That's one thing and I think there have been certain game plans against us
06:10that I've seen more and more and more as well,
06:13which I referred to in the press conference before the Inter game.
06:17So I've said multiple times we have to adapt
06:21and let's take the Sunderland game where we struggled to create a lot of chances
06:27and the game after they faced a team that hit a shot far from outside the box
06:34and scored a set-piece.
06:35These are the ways to unlock a team that's either defending low
06:40and hardly gives away anything.
06:42The other option is, of course, an individual that just outplays his,
06:48dominates the 1v1, that is also something.
06:52When I looked at the City-Realm-Rude game,
06:55I saw some great examples of that.
06:57One or two individuals that were able to create a lot
07:01and another set-piece scored in that game as well.
07:06Carl?
07:08You started with Zac and Ike together in Milan,
07:14and it's very rarely that they have a chance to do that.
07:17I wonder what you've learned from that
07:18and how it affects your thinking going forward
07:21in terms of where they play and the formation they play in?
07:26I think what we all saw, which is completely normal,
07:32the more they will play together, the more they will adapt to each other
07:36and the better they will cooperate.
07:39I think it's fair to say that the other two that were on the pitch,
07:44the two No.9s, Stuart Alme and Lautaro Martinez,
07:47were more used to play with each other.
07:50But I saw also promising things from the both of them.
07:54It's been the second time they played together, for obvious reasons,
07:57because match fitness is the obvious reason in that.
08:02And I think we will see more of this in the future, of them playing together.
08:08But Alex also got a knock in the first half,
08:11so let's see how he has recovered from that today,
08:16if he's able to start tomorrow and if he's able,
08:19if I make the decision to start them again together,
08:22or we do it in a different way.
08:25Hi, Arne. Off the back of that,
08:29and speaking about going direct as you were before,
08:32the benefit of having two six-foot-three strikers like that
08:35is that you do have the ability to go direct yourself,
08:38particularly against an aggressive, high-pressing team like Brighton.
08:41I think they win the ball in the final third more than any other team.
08:45It's not something Liverpool really traditionally done,
08:48even when Gakpo was in the team, who's another six-foot-three striker.
08:51I just wonder what your thinking was.
08:53Is this a kind of a philosophical thing that you don't necessarily like,
08:56or maybe just an idea you haven't quite got to yet?
09:00I don't think height always tells you
09:03if a player is perfectly equipped for that style.
09:06Sometimes players are really tall,
09:10but they struggle to win their duels,
09:12and sometimes they are less tall,
09:15but they're really strong when you play the long ball towards them.
09:19I think both Alex and Hugo at this moment of time,
09:23you can better use them with balls in behind than long balls into their body.
09:30Where I can see especially Hugo trying to improve, trying to improve.
09:36So if I compare him with, for example, was it two months ago when we played Brentford?
09:41Where he probably got the first taste of what it means to have a game
09:47where you really have to fight for your position.
09:50That wasn't a game that was played a lot over the floor.
09:53But I see him trying, trying, trying to do this better and better and better.
09:58But in that part of his game there's still room for improvement,
10:02as there is for so many parts of our game in general.
10:06What was you said on Tuesday when we had 13 downfield players?
10:12You've also got a few injuries at the moment.
10:15Are you a bit concerned in terms of the squad that's going on for the next few weeks?
10:18Is that maybe something you'd like to address it?
10:21No, I think it's helpful that in the upcoming weeks
10:25we don't play as many games as we did till now.
10:28I wonder if there have been more teams that have played three games in seven days this season,
10:35and I think we had to do it three times already this season.
10:40What can I say about this?
10:45I'm almost happy that we're out of the league cap,
10:49because if we had to play with 13 outfield players available with any Premier League experience,
10:55because we have more available of course,
10:57but not players that have Premier League experience,
11:00and we had to go Arsenal away on Tuesday again after already so many games played,
11:06that maybe, I don't know, people can understand a little bit better
11:11why I made that line-up against Palace, which wasn't good for me,
11:15but I did another decision I've made for the team,
11:20because losing a game of football is never a good idea,
11:25and that is what happened when we were not in the best run-up form.
11:30But sometimes players need rest as well,
11:33so look at Dominic, look at Virgil, look at Ibu, Liquid, Ryan,
11:36they've played so many minutes because other ones weren't available.
11:41So it's good for them that we go now to a run-off game
11:47where there's one week rest in between,
11:50and players will come back from injuries,
11:53and when they are back from injuries there's more to choose from as well.
11:57James?
11:58Just on Mo, in terms of the decision-making process
12:02between not going to Milan and then whether he's part of the squad tomorrow,
12:05is that solely your call or is that above you with Richard Hughes and Michael Edwards?
12:12If he's in the squad, yes or no?
12:14And the decision not to take him to Milan and this weekend as well?
12:18I think we've decided as a club, and I was part of that decision not to take him
12:23towards the Inter Milan game, and I'm always in contact with them,
12:29but when it comes to the decision-making of the line-up or the squad,
12:34they always leave that open to me.
12:36But that's not to say that I don't talk to them, mainly Richard by the way, not Michael,
12:41but I talk to him about so many things,
12:46but the decision to play a player or to have him in the squad,
12:50as I've experienced it till now, and I think this will never change,
12:53is entirely up to me.
12:56Do you want Mo to stay here?
12:59Sorry?
13:00Do you want Mo to stay here?
13:01Like I said, another way of asking it,
13:04but the next time I talk about Mo should be with him,
13:10and I have no reasons not wanting him to stay,
13:13if that is a little bit of an answer to your question.
13:17Do you still have a relationship with him?
13:20I know you've said a lot about this, but is it fair to stay with him?
13:24Vinny, they have better questions than you.
13:27No, I wouldn't say better, but they tried in multiple ways.
13:31It's useless of asking this question,
13:33if I've said so many times the same answer.
13:36Given the fact that you've beaten him before,
13:38do you feel some sort of justification for your decision?
13:41This club has won a lot, a lot, a lot of games with him.
13:51That's the answer to your question, I think.
13:54Mike, the last one.
13:55Just back to what you said about the number of fixtures,
13:57because he's got two weeks in a row now,
13:59but I don't know if he's a fixture,
14:00is it beneficial to be the players in the training round?
14:03Do you haven't really had that in the pre-season?
14:06Yeah, that's definitely beneficial,
14:10because training time helps to get the connection going,
14:14although playing time helps with this as well.
14:16But it's also safe to say that some of these players have played so many minutes
14:24that I don't think my performance staff will tell me
14:29OK, let's go out in the upcoming two weeks and train twice a day.
14:32I don't think that's what they're going to advise me.
14:35So, yes, there will be more playing time,
14:38so there's more time to prepare for a game,
14:41because that's also the difference between us and Brighton.
14:47I think they've had five or six days to come up with a game plan,
14:50train this, optimise their game plan,
14:57and it's the first time after the Inter game we have a session today.
15:03But yeah, if you play in Europe,
15:07that's the last thing you should complain about,
15:09because this is what we want,
15:10but it is a reality for us in the last months indeed.
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