Arne Slot believes his team have shown the mental strength to bounce back from disappointment and that Liverpool won’t be found lacking bottle as they look to win the Premier League
Arne Slot believes the Mentality Monsters he inherited at Liverpool are getting even stronger. The Kop boss knew he was taking over a special squad of players when he succeeded Jurgen Klopp in the summer.
But with the Reds now on the threshold of becoming Premier League champions, the Dutchman insists that his team have already proved that they won’t be found wanting when it comes down to bottle. Slot has only been disappointed by his players on one occasion this season – when they were beaten 2-0 by Newcastle in the Carabao Cup final last month.
Liverpool face Fulham after getting back to winning ways with victory in a gruelling derby battl e with Everton in midweek – and Slot said: “Even the bumps (we’ve had) we have always given everything we could – except for the Newcastle game.
“You can always lose – but the way we lost against Newcastle was the way this team and I hate to lose.
“The mentality is also part of it – and being consistent is also part of it mentally. If you have a good result or a bad result, how do you react to that? Are you showing up the next time doing the same things again?
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“Against Everton I saw us play better football. I saw us react better when bad decisions were being made by the referee. I saw us being firmer in the tackle and winning duels than we were in the League Cup final.
“These are the ingredients we need to win a game of football in the Premier League – and the players are aware of that. I think it’s an accomplishment if I can only recall one game when I wasn’t happy with those three things – and that is a big compliment for the team.”
Slot knew he was taking over a special group of players when he arrived from PSV Eindhoven after doing his homework on Liverpool’s squad. He saw that spirit up close for the first time when Liverpool snatched a 2-2 home draw against Fulham in December thanks to Diogo Jota’s late equaliser.
The Reds had been reduced to 10 men following a harsh red card for Andy Robertson while Fulham’s Andreas Pereira escaped with a yellow for a horror tackle on Ryan Gravenberch.
Slot was given a two-game touchline ban after being sent off after a bruising derby at Everton in February. So he was delighted to see his team keep their cool to win the return on Wednesday night despite Everton’s James Tarkowski being allowed to stay on the pitch after a brutal challenge on Alexis Mac Allister.
Slot said: “It was a difficult situation when we played Fulham at Anfield. Did I learn something? Well I already knew this team had a lot of character, not only working with them but also what they have done in the past.
“I remember last season, when they were down to 10 men at Newcastle and 1-0 down – and Darwin Nunez scored two goals. So it wasn’t a surprise for me.
“But to be involved in it myself, I definitely saw what a special team this was and it gave us a lot of confidence for the games afterwards. The biggest lesson we have learned was from the away game at Everton, when things went against us and we did concede a goal in the end.
“I think we learned from that game again when another major decision went against us – but this time it didn’t get into our head.”
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