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Steven Gerrard has praised Arne Slot for his handling of the scrutiny and pressure that has mounted in the last few weeks.
The Liverpool head coach ended a four-match losing run in the Premier League by securing a 2-0 victory over Aston Villa on Saturday, thanks to goals from Ryan Gravenberch and Mohamed Salah.
It was a vastly improved display from Liverpool, with the midfield dominating for long spells, while the defense managed to keep a clean sheet. Individuals like Mohamed Salah, Alexis Mac Allister and Conor Bradley were back to their best after facing such heavy criticism in recent weeks.
Virgil van Dijk claimed the response to Liverpool’s downturn was “ridiculous”, and a former Liverpool captain said Slot has emerged from the unfair criticism without losing his cool.
“I think he has handled the last couple of weeks really well,” Gerrard told TNT Sports.
“He has been calm. He has been under immense pressure; so have his players. But that’s the demand at Liverpool, especially on the back of becoming champions.
“But you don’t rest on that; it’s about parking that up and going for the next prize.
“He has handled it well. It’s a great win, a big win; he deserves a lot of credit for that. But they come thick and fast, and in a few days’ time he’ll be expected to beat Real Madrid.”
Gerrard is no stranger to damaging, confidence-sapping slumps of form at Liverpool. Asked how he dealt with that during his time as skipper, the 45-year-old replied: “You have to stick together, of course.
“The coach, it’s his responsibility to make sure that you’re protected from the outside noise. All the matters is working hard, trying to fix the issues on the training pitch, and going out and showing what a good individual player, and that you’re part of a successful team.
“That’s what Liverpool are. They’ve had a rough spell; it hasn’t been good enough. The players have accepted the responsibility; the manager has, and they’ve bounced back tonight with a real professional performance.”
Gerrard was also impressed with Liverpool’s performance on Saturday but admitted Villa, the side he managed between 2021 and 2022, gave the Reds a helping hand.
“I felt they [Liverpool] were physical, the steel was back. The work rate, the intensity in possession. I think all the good stuff came off the back of that.
“I think Villa were their own victims. Overplaying in the build-up, too many mistakes.
“The tactics weren't wrong from Aston Villa. I think the manager got the tactics spot on, started the game really well. Too many mistakes in the build-up and Liverpool punished them for it.”
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