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Arne Slot explained his rationale for leaving Mohamed Salah on the bench against Paris Saint-Germain.
Against PSG, Liverpool were dominated, being outshot 18-3 and holding just 24 percent of possession in the 2-0 loss. Given how impressive PSG's front line was, Slot opted to focus more on the defense, despite the final score.
After the match, the Dutch manager explained his decision to keep Salah on the bench. His explanation follows a star sharing his thoughts on the match and what he is looking forward to in the weeks ahead.
When asked by reporters why the Egyptian star did not play, Slot explained that the match developed in a way that did not require Salah to play. As a result, Slot opted to keep Salah fresh for future contests rather than have him expend energy in a battle that did not pan out as the club expected.
"I think in the last part of the game it was more about surviving for us than there was ever a chance that we could score," Slot admitted after the fact. "You never know, because last season we scored five minutes before the end. Harvey Elliott, when I took Mo off.
"But I think this was a 20, 25 minutes where we were only defending. Mo has so much qualities, but for Mo to be 20, 25 minutes defending inside his own box, I think it's better for him to save his energy for a lot of games that are coming up in the upcoming weeks."
Slot added that for most of the match, Liverpool was in "survival mode" against PSG, which also extends to the part of the campaign the club find themselves in. "So to try to find ways where we can try to make sure that their qualities are not seen that much, but that's really, really hard against this team because last season over here we were in survival mode as well," he continued.
"But as I said, Paris Saint-Germain was the better team, but we didn't give up and that's why we have a chance now still in this tie because they kept us alive by not scoring a few open chances.
"And now we can bring the tie back to Anfield. Not unfortunately, but in between there's still a very important game to be played for us against Fulham."
With PSG dominating most of the match, Liverpool captain Virgil Van Dijk sounded off on how he saw the contest unfolding. Speaking on BT Sport after the loss, the 34-year-old explained how he was "not happy" with the result, though he did share a positive.
“Tough, tough work, but it was expected,” Van Dijk shared. “I think we defended with a lot of bodies around the box. Unfortunately, the first goal was a deflection.
“We had some small moments on the break where we could have done better. I'm not happy about losing, the only positive is we have another game next week.”
He added that with the fans' help, the club can regain its form. “I've been through many special evenings at Anfield, I'm very lucky and privileged. Our fans are the backbone of our club, and hopefully they can be there for us again," he concluded.
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