Arne Slott admits he has been surprised by the “huge change” in the style of play in the Premier League this season – but believes his “technically gifted” squad is adapting and it will ultimately give Liverpool the edge over their rivals.
The Liverpool head coach hit the headlines earlier this week when he said entertaining football is “worth more” than winning trophies in the long term at Anfield.
Speaking with Ski Sports ahead of Sunday’s clash with Manchester City, he stood by those comments, saying “if you don’t play good football, it’s (almost) impossible to win anything or achieve anything sustainable”.
However, he also noted that the increased physicality of opposition teams sometimes hampered Liverpool’s pursuit of the football they wanted to use.
“We never waste time. We always want to press high. We always want to get the ball out from the back,” he explained of Liverpool’s ethos. “But unfortunately we face teams that have a different approach, which is completely fair to them.”
Sunday, February 8 at 4:00 p.m
Start at 16:30
“Each team should play their own style, which is best equipped to play against us, and it shows that sometimes we struggle with that style.
“It’s not always possible for a team to get tempo in the game or get things going if the other team tries to do everything to take that tempo out of the game.”
Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Liverpool v Newcastle in the Premier League.
“When we play more open games this season, we’ve shown that we always want to be part of that kind of game, and we’ve done really well. But the games where we’ve dropped points have had a different look and feel, but that’s not what we wanted it to be, it’s what was forced on us.
“Now, the next step is to make sure that if that style of play is forced upon us, we’re good enough to change it to the game we want to play.”
Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Following Arne Slott’s comments that playing good football is more important than trophies, Jamie O’Hara said Liverpool are achieving neither, and said that if they fail to qualify for the Champions League this season, the manager must go.
“It’s something new in the Premier League. Not only in our games, this is something you see a lot. This is what we have to accept and find the right answer.”
‘Last season was completely different’
Asked about the change in style in England’s top flight, Slott admitted his side have suffered at times, particularly from set-pieces, and suggested Liverpool’s preparation of the squad has left them needing to adapt to the league’s new demands.
But he is confident it could ultimately work to their advantage.
“Certainly, things have changed. Things have changed significantly,” he said.
“I didn’t expect the league to be the way it is this season because I was here last season and it was completely different for me.”
“Maybe once, twice, three times we’ve seen similar things like we’re seeing this season, but this season it’s been a huge, huge, huge change.
“Look at the one at the top of the Premier League (Arsenal). It’s fair for me to say they are by far the best team in the league. If one team has success – and Arsenal have had success for a number of years in terms of set pieces – (other teams) try to copy it.
“We’re trying to do a lot better than we’re doing at the moment, but maybe we’ve gone the other way.”
“If you look at our players, we haven’t bought the biggest and tallest ones who are big, big, big set-piece threats.
“Many of our players are already technically gifted and are adapting more and more to that physical style, which the Premier League has become more and more.
“It’s a positive thing because if the technically gifted players can adapt to that physical style as well, which we’ve seen so many times this season, then you could have an advantage over the rest.