14 hours ago
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Arne Slot said it meant a lot to him that Liverpool’s fans showed him support during the 2-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday.
Slot was serenaded by the Kop midway through the first half, with the score at 0-0. The fans then chanted his name on several occasions throughout the second period, which reached a crescendo at full-time, as Anfield showed the Dutchman very much still has their support despite the recent downturn in results.
The win over Villa ended a run of six defeats in seven, while Slot’s team selection in midweek proved particularly controversial as he rested Liverpool’s better players and named a bench made up entirely of youth-team players.
But he justified that decision with the 2-0 victory on Saturday, a result that certainly delighted the fans.
Asked what the full-time scenes meant to him, Slot responded: “A lot, especially because it happened at 0-0 and not when you are leading and not top of the league and you are in a difficult situation.
“To get the support the players got, but also I got, that is what makes this club special and they help you especially when things are difficult, and they were the last few weeks. They felt the players and me needed some support.”
So bad has Liverpool’s recent run of results and performances been that speculation has even grown on social media that his job could be under threat, while some bookmakers placed him at second favorite to be the next Premier League head coach to depart. But Slot said that is simply part of the job.
“You always feel pressure if you are at Liverpool. If you are leading the table you feel pressure, but I always feel the support of the fans.
“In the recent results, I never felt it was less than before. They were not only there for me but for the team as well, they were so supportive.
“We played many away games so we had poor results but you cannot compare that to a home game under the lights at Anfield.”
On the nature of the win against Villa, Slot added: I’m happy with the result and the performance and what I saw today not only from the players but the support we got from the fans was what we were needed.
“Maybe we were more on the lucky side than we have been in the last few weeks s where we were mainly unlucky, A mistake of their goalkeeper and the deflection.”
The victory means Liverpool now sits third in the table, seven points behind leaders Arsenal.
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