Defeat to Brentford the worst so far, says beleagured Slot as losing run goes on with a sense of fatal freefall.
Arne Slot admits Liverpool’s Brentford defeat among his worst as losing run goes on.
Arne Slot stated that opponents appear to have figured out how to play against them and said that Saturday’s loss to Brentford was “up there” as possibly the most disappointing he has ever been as manager of Liverpool.
After last week’s defeat by Manchester United, Slot seemed mildly outraged that Ruben Amorim’s side had been so direct. This Saturday, there was a marked change of tone but the problem was the same. “They’re a very good team in winning duels and second balls,” he said, “and you have to give them credit for that. It’s also difficult to win a game of football if the set-piece balance is in their favour.”
Brentford’s opening goal stemmed from a long throw from Michael Kayode, an increasingly familiar weapon. Long thows, Slot said, were “the only thing we did yesterday on the training pitch, preparing for that. And the meeting today. Brentford are also known for very good set pieces, but they are also, in my opinion, known for a fantastic counterattack.”
Shortly after Cody Gakpo had fallen in the box, they received their second from a counter. The third goal for Brentford was a penalty that was first awarded as a free kick before VAR determined that contact had taken place on the line.
“I think if you would show both situations,” Slot said, “the penalty we conceded, and that moment, and you show this to every referee in the world, he would tell you maybe both are nothing, but if he had to give one of the two, he definitely would give the one to Cody.”
The loss was Liverpool’s fourth in a row in the league; if Arsenal beat Crystal Palace on Sunday, they will lead the champions by seven points. “We don’t compete up there because we simply concede too many goals,” said Slot. “If you change quite a lot during the summer, then I think it’s not a surprise that it can go a bit like this, but I didn’t expect it to go with four losses in a row. It’s always a bit of a bumpy road. I don’t know if that has been seen as an excuse, but from the last six games we’ve played, it’s been five away.”