After a comfortable 3-0 win over Man United at Old Trafford, Arne Slot casually summed up in two minutes how Liverpool managed to beat their fierce rivals.
Slot’s Liverpool made light work of their biggest challenge yet with the Dutchman as head coach, with a 3-0 victory away to Man United.
Two goals from Luis Diaz and another from Mo Salah sealed the three points, but in reality it could have been a lot more.
United were outfought and outclassed from the first minute, leaving the travelling supporters chanting Slot’s name as he signed off for the September international break with a 100 percent record.
Speaking to Sky Sports afterwards, Slot was asked to explain his tactical approach to the tie and how he felt Man United had changed this season.
In the space of two minutes, the Dutchman gave a blueprint to the rest of the Premier League for how to beat Erik ten Hag’s side.
What did you identify about Man United that allowed you to get this result?
“Last season they were man-marking in the midfield and they had a press with the No. 7 and No. 11, so with the striker and one of the wingers jumped with him.
“This season, they are more with a No. 9 and No. 10 press, so they’re more in a 4-4-2. So that’s different, of course.
“I see them, in my opinion, working harder if the ball is played through them. So they run more.
“That’s at least what I saw in the first games.”
Did you know if you won it high up the pitch you’d be straight at them?
“Their style this season, maybe last season as well, their full-backs are nine out of 10 times really high and then Casemiro comes in between.
“So if you pick the ball and you can keep Luis Diaz and Mo Salah high, then you’re constantly in a one-vs-one situation.
“Then you need midfielders that can run, and we had three of them today that kept on running, and if they arrive in the duel then they are aggressive enough to win it.
“That was, I think, one of the main things why we could win today.”
Is that in some ways a gamble, to make sure Salah and Diaz are staying high up?
“It’s only a gamble if they play through or over and [our wingers] stay where they are. But if they then sprint back, it’s not a gamble.
“I think today we saw a lot of moments where our forwards – the whole team but especially our forwards – tracked back so aggressively.
“I think that is what we need if you want to win these games, because if you don’t then the defenders become overwhelmed.
“And that’s not what you want when you play against these players, because United has, in my opinion, a lot of quality.”
What was your message at half-time?
“We said they were going to press differently, so be prepared for that.
“We tried to find out what they were trying to do, but also showed them three moments, in one situation, that led to a chance of [Noussair] Mazraoui where Lucho was not tracking back as he should.
“I came back to the moment where Trent played a sloppy pass towards Alisson.
“Those moments can change the game here at Old Trafford, so you need to be focused and concentrated every second if you want to win here.”
