Liverpool's trump cards: Slots adaptability and record hunter Salah
Thanks to a mature performance, Liverpool celebrated success in Arne Slot's first away game against Manchester City. In addition to the Dutchman's tactics, Mohamed Salah was once again responsible for this.
Twice the victory fist: Arne Slot and Mohamed Salah defeated ManCity with Liverpool. IMAGO/Sportimage
In his first away game at the Ethiad Stadium, Arne Slot managed to do something Jürgen Klopp never managed in Manchester during the Guardiola era: win the league . One reason for the Dutchman's first win was his adaptability. The Reds gave the ball to their opponents much more often than usual: they only had 34 percent of possession at the final whistle - the last time Liverpool had such a low percentage in a Premier League win was in the 2003/04 season.
"You can't have the ball the whole game here. You have to concentrate on defending as a team," explained Curtis Jones in an interview with Viaplay. Virgil van Dijk reminded his teammates of this again after Mohamed Salah 's 1-0 goal, as the homegrown player revealed.
Van Dijk warns against complacencyIn general, the captain acts as a warning voice within the team and, despite being eleven points ahead of Arsenal , who still have a game in hand, he did not want to hear anything about a preliminary decision in the title race. "Virgil just said it in the dressing room: 'They will say that we are already there, that we are the champions. We are nowhere yet and we should not let ourselves be driven crazy,'" said Jones.
I and the big guys on the team need another title.
Salah is driving LFC fans crazy at the moment. The Egyptian is in brilliant form and also provided the assist after his goal in Manchester. This set up a new record: Salah is the first player in the Premier League to score at least 40 points in two seasons (42 in the 2017/18 season, 40 in the current one). It is likely that the winger will beat his personal record in what could be his last season - Salah's contract expires in the summer.
Accordingly, the 32-year-old also described the current season as his best. "Maybe people prefer my first season, but I prefer the current one because it is something special to win the league and help the young players. We need another title. I and the big guys in the team need another title," said Salah. These "big guys" are doing a lot for it, as last Sunday impressively showed.
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