Sports
Steven Gerrard Tells Arne Slot to Quit Moaning About Low Blocks
Club icon Steven Gerrard has taken aim at Arne Slot for his comments to the media after Liverpool’s 3-0 away win over Marseille. The Reds picked up three valuable points in the Champions League as they rose to fourth in the competition’s league phase table with just one game to play.
A tight first half ended in delight for the Premier League side as Dominik Szoboszlai cleverly snuck in a low free-kick under the wall only moments before the break. An own goal from Geronimo Rulli and a late effort from Cody Gakpo saw Liverpool win convincingly in France.
Speaking to the press after the game, Slot made clear his delight that it had been an open game. Gerrard, however, wasn’t happy with the comments.
Arne Slot Delighted At Avoiding Low Block vs Marseille
Talking after the win, as quoted in Daily Mail, Slot explained how facing a low block is the Achilles’ heel, which so often prevents his side from producing performances like the one against Marseille. He said:
“I know so well why we are not consistent. That mainly has to do with when a game is more open, when players can players can play through the lines and tactics are involved and they show how good they are, that’s completely different than against a low block.
“You need a completely different quality against a low block. Against a low block, it doesn’t have much to do with what you prepare before the game. You just have the ball a lot, get in the final third, and something should happen.
“You cannot compare that with the game tonight when both teams want to play out from the back and press. Every game we’ve played this season when this was the situation, we’ve played very good games. Many of these games we’ve got results, lost against Man City and Chelsea.
“Why we are inconsistent – if you want to call 14 times unbeaten “inconsistent” – that has all to do with us struggling against a low block.”
Gerrard: Low Blocks Have Been Happening at Liverpool Since I Played’
Speaking as a pundit on TNT Sports, Gerrard insisted that Slot should stop moaning about this issue, as it’s something he even had to face back when he was club captain, now over a decade ago. He said:
“He needs to stop mentioning low blocks. Low blocks have been happening at Liverpool since I played and many, many years before me. That’s just the way it is, teams are going to try and do everything they can to stop Liverpool.
“The key is finding solutions. You’ve got the players. Then you’ll turn the low-block games into wins rather than draws. It’s not going to change.
“They’ll face a low block at times against Bournemouth at the weekend. They’ve got to be ruthless and the big players have got to step forward and score the goals to win games.”
Only adding to Gerrard’s point, Slot brought up the low block issue yet again in another post-match interview, this time with CBS Sports. He said: “Today we didn’t face a low block and we played a very good game. If you face a low block, it’s very hard to get pace into the game.”
