Every word Arne Slot said on Gomez injury, Szoboszlai controversy and Liverpool's 'bad luck'

Liverpool boss Arne Slot spoke to the media ahead of his side's clash with Sunderland, with the Reds facing an uphill battle after the weekend defeat to Manchester City

Arne Slot speaking during a press conference ahead of Liverpool's game against Sunderland

Liverpool has it all to do as it prepares to head to Sunderland on Wednesday, with Champions League qualification looking like a tall order.

Defeat to Manchester City on Sunday means the Reds now find themselves five points behind Manchester United and four behind Chelsea in the race to reach Europe’s top table, and with both of those sides playing later today, the situation could become more grim before kick-off at the Stadium of Light.

Arne Slot isn’t helped by Dominik Szoboszlai’s suspension either, with the midfielder having been sent off in the dying stages at Anfield. There is though some better news on Joe Gomez’s fitness.

Here is what Liverpool’s boss had to say during his pre-match press conference on Tuesday…

On Szoboszlai's red card

"My feelings haven’t changed. The moment I saw he got a red card, I was disappointed not to have him against Sunderland.

“But on the other hand, I think the referee did what he had to do, and that’s not what we like if we love football. But it’s the rulebook, and referees are there to follow the rulebook."

Dominik Szoboszlai will miss Liverpool's game against Sunderland after picking up a one-match ban(Image: Getty Images)

On Gomez's injury

"Joe has not trained with us yet, I’m expecting him to train with us today for the first time.

"If Joe’s not ready to start, then we’re missing four players that have played in that position, but Curtis [Jones] and Wata [Endo] also played in that position this year, so we’ve had six different right fullbacks this season."

On what his side needs now

"Yeah, close to perfection because of the points we're behind. We also know that it's different when you are four points behind a team that's 18th or 19th in the league, because they usually don't pick up as many points as the number three, four or five picks up.

"So, to close the gap of four or five points towards the number three, four or five that means you have to win a lot. And that's not what we've done this season a lot, so that's why that has to be better and we have to come close to perfection.

"Margins are indeed very small because seven minutes before the end [on Sunday] we thought we were five points behind [Manchester] City and five minutes later we were 11 points behind."

On bouncing back after conceding late again

"I have to give a lot of credit to my players because we've had so many setbacks or hits, the way you said it. So many times we didn't get what we deserved but every three days later they showed up again and brought in a good performance, which not always led to a win.

"But I've said many times here that I think there were only three halves this season where the other team was far better than us; that was Crystal Palace, that was Man City and maybe Arsenal away [in the] first half, although that was parts of the first half. For the rest it was close to equal or we were the far better team. So that is credit to the players because they've had many, many, many setbacks this season."

On Sunderland's unbeaten home record

"But it's not only that they [Sunderland] have a good record at home, they have had a very good season. But the record at home, I was aware of that as well. And already played against City and Arsenal at home, so that tells you how good of a season they are having and how strong and good they are at home."

Sunderland has the only unbeaten home record in the Premier League this season(Image: 2026 Getty Images)

Has Sunderland had the best season in the Premier League so far?

"I think there are more teams that are having a very good season. So, Arsenal is definitely one of them. [Aston] Villa is impressive. Brentford is very impressive. But Sunderland is also impressive. And maybe I forget a few as well.

"It's definitely an accomplishment or very good that if you are promoted and you come in the Premier League and you do so well, that is a big compliment to their players and to their manager."

Has Liverpool suffered from 'bad luck'?

"That is always the question. It feels like that, that's for sure. Even if we sign a player and he's not even playing for us he gets injured!

"So, sometimes it feels like that but the moment you start to feel it's all bad luck, probably it comes to you as well. So, we should keep it away as much as possible and just focus on the performance and focus on what we can do to improve it.

"The amount of times we conceded late goals in extra time is far more than usual. The question is, is it bad luck or are we to blame? I think I've tried many different things, so I've made defensive substitutions and the ball went in and I kept playing the same players and the ball went in.

"We've tried a lot and sometimes it feels... I can fairly say we haven't been lucky, that's definitely true. Is it then unlucky or is this part of who we are? That is something we can only find out in the upcoming three to four months."

Jeremy Jacquet picked up an injury while playing for Rennes(Image: Getty Images)

On keeping morale high

"That's not always easy because I don't think anyone feels from the last 14 or 15 games – I don't even know how much exactly – we've 'only lost two' but we've had far too many draws and a draw feels like a loss at this club as well.

"That's definitely not easy for them as well because they know what the standards of Liverpool mean – and we are not performing to the standards of Liverpool at the moment.

"So, they feel that disappointment and mainly because we are so close every single game. Every game, it feels as if we're going to win it but it doesn't happen and that is probably even more difficult than when you play a game that throughout the whole game you already feel like the other team is better or we were just not good enough.

"That's not what they feel. If they play a game they feel performance-wise they can compete with any other team in the league [or] in the world, but the reality is that we don't perform to Liverpool's standards."

Is this his most challenging season as a coach?

"Yeah, that's fair to say... by a mile because all the other seasons I've managed there were only positives. I don't think I'd ever lost two games in a row, so it's an exception this season for me as it is for the players.

"The players are not used to losing a lot or having a lot of draws. I'm not used to that as well. It's always more of a challenge after you lose a game of football to get them going again than after a win [and] telling them we were not as good as they might think they were. So, yes, this this season has been more challenging for me as well, but you also take nice things out of it, [however] weird that may sound because I also look at how much improvement we are making.

Arne Slot has come under pressure at Liverpool this season(Image: Getty Images)

"The main thing as a manager you are always looking for is the results, but it's also important players and the team improves, because if that doesn't happen we're having an even bigger problem over here. In my opinion, everyone is now able – except for maybe the players who are injured – to play every three days at an intensity level that is needed at this club, but in the Premier League as well and as a result of that, I think our performances are much, much, much, much better than they were in the start of the season.

"I don't mean the first six games, maybe, but the period when we started playing a double programme because in the first six games we only had once a double programme with Everton and that was a difficult win. Since we went into that double programme, we started to drop so many points."

Has he tried anything differently?

"Yeah, you always do something different because you cannot compare any season with another one and it's different, as I said, to lead the team after a loss, or after multiple losses or after multiple draws, than it is after a win.

"But I haven't [and] I don't think anyone in this building would tell you that I completely changed. No, I didn't, but it is different after a season that we're having now than all the other seasons I've managed where we always did something special. And there is still a possibility that we can do something special this season as well."

Would Champions League qualification make it an 'acceptable' season?

"Yes. If we don't have Champions League football it has definitely not been an acceptable season."

On the impact missing out could have

"That's what I said, that when I arrived here we could only sign Federico Chiesa and that was after a Europa League season. So, that does have an enormous impact on the way this club is run, that is clear. So, we are completely aware and I am completely aware of that."