1 week ago
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Arne Slot delivered his most upbeat post-match remarks in a long while following Liverpool's convincing win over Eintracht Frankfurt. Ending a four-game losing streak, the Reds put five past the German side, and the manager liked what he saw.
He may have feared the worst when Liverpool went behind in the first half. But it was 3-1 by the break, with Frankfurt's defensive issues making Slot's recent problems look tame.
Hugo Ekitike opened the scoring against his old club, before Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate turned the screw via corner kicks. Frankfurt was even more wide open in the second period, and Liverpool took full advantage.
Cody Gakpo got in on the act after a lovely pass from Florian Wirtz, and then Dominik Szoboszlai chipped in from outside the box. By this point, the game had turned into an exhibition.
All in all, it was almost exactly what Slot would have dreamed of. It would have been a perfect night had it not been for the goal conceded, and injuries picked up by Jeremie Frimpong and Alexander Isak.
Slot confirmed that Isak's withdrawal was an injury precaution, after the striker felt discomfort in his groin. The manager also discussed the win, and the one main difference from recent defeats.
"Yeah we needed to win," Slot conceded, speaking to TNT Sports. "And what we needed more is another performance where we've created a lot of chances, but that also the players get the reward, and that's what happened today.
"I saw a lot of similarites today compared to our other games. The first chance they got was immediately a goal, maybe the only chance.
"That [it was the only one they got] may be because we went 3-1 up. It's easier to control a game of football when you're 3-1 up than if you're 1-0 down or 2-1 down.
"The main difference between this game and the four before was that in most of them the other team scored a set piece, and now we were able to score two set pieces.
"Now people focus more on the attacks in the second half than on the misplaced passes. We probably had them today as well, but if you're 3-1 up then you are judged differently."
Slot has something of a point. There are fine margins at the top, and Liverpool's runaway win was not completely unrecognizable from the four consecutive losses, even if it will be viewed entirely differently.
And having taken the lead, Liverpool was able to make the most of even more spaces opening up. Suddenly, the attack looked as though it had been together for years.
Having said that, Liverpool fans will be hoping that Slot is working on ways to make this positive outcome more repeatable. He has repeatedly referenced how games are being decided one way or another by either set pieces or moments of magic: if that's the case, then the focus needs to be on working out how to reliably engineer them.
One key weapon in that regard could be Ekitike, who was excellent again. Slot praised not only his goal but his all-round performance.
"The focus is mainly on goals and assists, which he's done well, but there are also other parts of our game which are needed to win a game of football," Slot mused."I saw players working really hard.
"For them to create [only] one or two counter attacks, that's also a main part of our game. They all did that really well including Hugo today."
Having stopped the rot, the next step will be following up on the win. Even without the worry over Isak, it might well have been Ekitike leading the line at the weekend — but regardless of personnel, the feel-good factor is back.
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