Liverpool head to Arsenal on Thursday night with Arne Slot having launched a passionate defence of his side’s recent Premier League performances
Liverpool boss Arne Slot insists he remains committed to attacking football – as he launched a passionate defence of the Reds’ recent performances.
Kop boss Slot takes his side to Arsenal on Thursday night with the defending champions currently 14 points behind the Premier League leaders. That’s despite Liverpool being on an eight-game unbeaten run in the Premier League – albeit they arrive at the Emirates having draw four of those.
Certainly, after the dismal run of nine defeats in 12 games in all competitions between September and November that has all but destroyed their hopes of retaining the title, Slot has looked to tighten up his side defensively. But that has led to accusations of the Reds being set up to be “boring”.
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However, the Dutchman insists he and his players are still as determined as ever to attack with intensity and aggression, but that the Reds’ struggles for goals is down to a lack of options in the final third, with Mo Salah at AFCON, Alexander Isak out injured for the foreseeable future and Hugo Ekitike, having missed the draw at Fulham, set for a late fitness test before the clash at the Emirates.
“Packing the team with midfielders is not something I am doing by choice,” he said. “I am doing it because certain players are not available and that is something that needs to be really clear because I am a manager now for six or seven years and I have always played with wingers and I have always changed my wingers with new wingers coming in.
“So I always have it 4-3-3 with real wingers and never 5-4-1 or 4-4-2 and I have adjusted it maybe four or five times in my career to bring in a midfielder as a winger because I thought the other team – when I was at different clubs to Liverpool – would have more quality than us so I wanted to make it more solid. But if I am known for one thing then it is attacking football, playing a lot of attackers and bringing a lot of attackers in when we are a goal down.
“So I find it hard to hear that we play boring football let alone that I am not playing attackers.”
Slot continued: “I agree that [steadying the ship] was the first thing that needed to happen but I didn’t do that to try and play defensive football. I think that is a misconception. We always pressed the other team as high as we could up the pitch, all over the pitch. And when we have the ball, we try to create as many chances as we can.
“That doesn’t really work, that I can see as well, that for all the ball possession we have we don’t create enough chances. Everyone can see that as well but I haven’t gone to a style of football where I started to play with five at the back or we started to go all defending our own box.
“Not at all. We didn’t change anything and you cannot have so much ball possession if you don’t go and press the opposition high up the pitch. I did not change our style but teams have changed their style against us. Our style is not to steady the ship, go back and defend your own box for 90 minutes. Not at all.
“Every single game we press them as high as we can but it’s no use pressing the goalkeeper if he kicks every ball long. A lot has been said about the difference between how teams play against us and other teams. And I know why, because it works really well against us to play long balls and in a low block because we struggle to create chances. I would do it.
“Fulham not once, even against Arsenal and Manchester City it was 4-3-3, 4-3-3, and the question is why did they play with five against us? I can answer that question but it would not be smart of me to do so.”
Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
