Following his side’s victory in the UCL on Wednesday night, Arne Slot said, “I like a lot what I saw”, adding, Liverpool “had total dominance” over Real Madrid.
 |
| Liverpool manager, Arne Slot, wave to fans in celebration of his side’s 2-0 win over Real Madrid in the Uefa Champions League 2024/25 League Phase match at Anfield on Wednesday 27 November, 2024. Photo: @LFC |
Liverpool defeated Real Madrid 2-0 in the Uefa Champions League 2024/25 League Phase match on Wednesday 27 November, 2024 at Anfield, thanks to goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo in the 52nd and 76th minutes respectively.
The outcome makes it five (5) out of five (5) for Arne Slot’s Liverpool.
According to liverpoolfc .com, at his post-Real Madrid press conference, Arne Slot said:
On his assessment of Liverpool’s performance…
“I liked a lot what I saw. Of course not everything. I think we controlled the first half with creating a few chances, but I also thought we were still a bit sloppy, so we lost the ball in very easy situations or we forced it a bit too much. I said, ‘Try to be even more patient, let the gaps open up instead of forcing them.’ Then it helps if, the first seven minutes after half-time I think we had total dominance, they even didn’t come across the halfway line. If you score a goal like this, then we were flying, if you want to put it like this.”
On how he feels about beating Real and if it is a ‘statement’…
“I think it’s always good to win a game, and especially a big game like this because you know you face so many quality players. For me, it would even mean more if we go into the later stages of the tournament because this is such a strange and different set-up in the Champions League that it’s difficult to judge how important these wins are. If we arrive in the last 16 or the quarter-finals or wherever we can arrive to and we face them again and then we are able to beat them, that would be maybe a bigger statement than this. But we are definitely happy with the win, let that be clear.”
On whether Kelleher’s form and Alisson Becker’s impending return gives him a ‘difficult decision’…
“I think every decision I have to make is a difficult one, because we have so many quality players. I’ve been clear about that situation but tonight shouldn’t be about that, it should be about Caoimh being so important for us. It was a big moment for him also I think; if you see Mbappe behind the ball, I thought probably what everybody thought – and what everybody also thought when Mo stepped up – ‘This ball is probably going to go in’. And he saved it, so it was a big moment for him, a special moment for him. So, let that be the headlines and not the other thing I was quite clear about one or two weeks ago.”
On how he has ‘managed to transform’ the team and lead the Champions League…
“I don’t think we transformed that much, we adjusted a bit. Maybe it’s your first time at Liverpool but I think the ones that are here for a long time, they are just almost used to playing a final or to be up there with all the great teams in Europe. This team has always been there. The last two years maybe have been a bit different than all these years before, but it was only maybe a few adjustments or playing different teams. But we are only five games in, in a new format, so we are happy where we are but we are not getting carried away by only winning in a group-stage game. This club wants more than only winning group-stage games.”
