Arne Slot arrives on Merseyside after three seasons at Dutch club Feyenoord
New Liverpool manager Arne Slot has immediately set his sights on capital overhaul Manchester City and Arsenal after acknowledging the scale of the task facing him as Jurgen Klopp's replacement at Anfield.
Competing for the first time since his appointment, the Dutchman vowed to build on his 82 points and third place finish last season. , and the theme of his acceptance speech underscores how he has left his mark on the strong foundation left by his iconic predecessor.
There were no quotes as memorable as Klopp's promise to turn «doubters into believers» during the 28-minute video , published on the club's website — the club is in a different place in 2024 compared to 2015 — but Slot understands the immediate expectations after an era of success.
“We'd all like to see Liverpool finish a little higher than third and that's the challenge we face now — building on what we've got,” Slot said.< /p>
“I'm totally I'm confident of that thanks to the players that we can add a few things that we can hopefully get a little more points than the 82 that is needed for the likes of Arsenal and Manchester City to hopefully eventually In the end, you will be a winner.» slightly higher than this season.”
Slot paid tribute to Klopp, saying that under his leadership Liverpool and Manchester City played football and Pep Guardiola promoted the European game in the same way that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo did during the peak years of Barcelona's rivalry with Real Madrid. .
The new manager has been watching videos of Klopp training as well as Liverpool games to better understand the legacy he is building on.
“One of the reasons I came is because I think the way «Liverpool 'looking' for me is that they weren't looking for the same type, but I think when something has been successful (with) a certain style of play and you want to extend it or continue it,» said Slot.
«That's my style, but I think that's the style of a lot of modern coaches at the moment: we were all a bit inspired by the rivalry between Manchester City and Liverpool. We were all inspired by Guardiola and Klopp. At a big club, which I also worked at at Feyenoord, that's probably the only style you can play — a lot of possession and a lot of energy.
«I'm 45 now and I've been watching football for a long time and I watch a lot of football, and I think that was the era when everyone was looking at the Barcelona team of Xavi, (Andres) Iniesta and (Lionel) Messi and the rivalry that was there between Real Madrid and Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I think when it all came to an end, a new rivalry in European football arose because of Jurgen — he was in charge of Liverpool and Pep Guardiola, of course, was in charge of Manchester City. I think for anyone who loves football it was a fantastic era where they both got the best out of each other.
I've seen a lot of Liverpool games, a lot of City games, and when you live in Europe, the Premier League is probably the best league to follow. So yeah, he's done a great job here and I'm very pleased with it as a fan, but now as his successor. I think he left Liverpool in the best possible way.”
“Klopp gave me a lot of good advice.”
Slot said he spoke to Klopp for advice about the club and the players he left behind. Introducing mild changes appears to be the main plan for Slot's debut season.
“If someone has been at a club for nine years and has been so successful, you want to know everything about it from them, and you want to know something about the players too — although I think it's also important to get your own opinion on it.” , said Slot.
“He gave me some good advice, but I think what stood out to me was that he was so happy for me and that — and I think he said this in the media too — from now on he will be my greatest fan.» because he supports Liverpool in the best possible way and that's something you don't see very often. So it says a lot about his character and how he handled this situation.
“We're going to work on what Jurgen left behind and we're going to see a lot of that. But, of course, I bring my own things, and I think that’s what is expected of me.
“I've already seen a lot of games, I've also seen a lot of training. Of course, fans can watch the games and know that we have very good players. But I've also seen a lot of training already and I think that's where you bring the culture and they always work hard — as the fans see during the game. A really good team, really good players who managed to stay at the top for a very long time.”
After watching training videos, Slot added, “You want to know what the culture is, how they train and what they’re used to. I think if you are the successor to Jurgen Klopp and also Pepijn Lijnders, who works a lot on the training pitch, it is always interesting to know what their ideas were. We all try to steal a little from each other — this is mostly done by watching games, but if you see them practice it can only help you. Let's make one thing clear: players will no longer have to do the same exercises — we will implement our own things. But it's interesting to see what they did in a week.»
Slot, who says he has already «reached out» to senior players such as Virgil van Dijk, explained that the delay in his official «unveiling» was out of respect for Klopp's drawn-out farewell at the end of last season.
«I think it was fair for him, the club and the fans to wait a bit and then come,» Slott said.
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