How Arne Slot Liverpool FC perfected a refined machine – and as the first Dutch coach the Premier League wins

In the weeks before Arne Slot started at Liverpool FC, June 2024, he thought a lot about how he would arrive at his new club. How to look at him. How he would be compared to his charismatic, popular predecessor.

He inherited a team formed by Jürgen Klopp, who left after nine years. « A great trainer with whom players have a very good relationship with and won prizes, » said Slot last May, at his farewell to Feyenoord. « I think in particular about that aspect: how do I deal with that? »

Arne Slot (46) was at that time a promising trainer who had been successful at AZ and Feyenoord. He was relatively unknown internationally, because as a player and trainer he never worked abroad and came from a smaller competition. In the Netherlands, with a sophisticated training, he brought a playing method to a high level and had players excel individually. Under ‘Developer’ Slot, many talents grew into International.

Making players better is one of my qualities, said Slot last spring in his house in the center of Zwolle when Liverpool technical director Richard Hughes spoke to him for the job. « We agree, » said Hughes according to the British newspaper The Times. Hughes browed in the sixty -page file that the club had drawn up over to the part that elaborated on it, with statistics and experiences of players.

Arrived top players

No matter how convinced of lock, there was unmistakably a risk in his appointment. Slot had to do something in which he had not yet proven: a team with arrived top players. Would the established players, including Mo Salah and captain Virgil van Dijk, accept his authority? In the knowledge that the shadow of Klopp, with whom part of the team won the Champions League (2019) and Premier League (2020), was never far away. Also literally: Klopps image can be seen in many places in the port city.

For a relatively inexperienced trainer, only active at the highest level for five years, it was a huge step. The expectations were perhaps therefore low, early this season, after third place last year under Klopp. Of the thirty experts who asked the BBC for a prediction, not one thought that Liverpool was going to win the title. Manchester City and Arsenal were top favorite.

Club legend Kenny Dalglish springs up, as Liverpool scores, on Sunday at Anfield. The discharge is large, after a quick backlog against Tottenham Hotspur. It will eventually be 5-1. The second national title in 35 years is celebrated en masse, where the championship in 2020 was not possible due to the coronavirus. Van Dijk is the first Dutchman to win the Premier League as a captain, Slot the first Dutch trainer.

How did Slot do? How did he perfect Liverpool FC for a refined machine?

Grinding playing style

At the start of the tour on Anfield, they hang next to each other – photos of Klopp and Slot. Do the first with a generous smile and a stimulating quote about « spirit » and do « special » things together. Where lock with his arms is over each other, neutral look and a dry text: he will do everything to lead the team in the « best possible way ».

If you see them like this, there are few similarities between the two coaches. But in the technical analysis that Liverpool made, they were there. The most important is their similar spelfilosophy: both stand for dominant, offensive football at a rapid pace with a lot of depth and aggressive pressure on the opponent. That meant that lock, in terms of playing method, could continue on the framework that was already there.

In the Netherlands, Slot often had to rebuild a team, because the best players leave every season. In the champion year of Feyenoord (2023) he fit in no fewer than sixteen new players. At Liverpool, a European top club where players stay longer due to the high salaries, he stands for a completely different assignment: how a existing Improve a team? Laverpool invested the least of all Premier League clubs last summer, only attacker Federico Chiesa was purchased.

On details, Slot grinds the robust structure that Klopp left behind. Keywords under Klopp were high energy, fast switching and the emotion of the moment. « If the chance arose, they always tried to do things at 100 miles per hour, » says football analyst Mark Carey van van The Athletic. « If things went well, things went really well, but as soon as it was disappointing it could collapse. » Liverpool experienced problems in particular with the defensive switching.

Slot builds on the existing playing style, but has added a ‘extra layer’, says Carey. « Where Liverpool played with the heart under Klopp, they play much more with their heads. » They are more patient in possession, sometimes slow down, give an extra pass.

« We play more on possession, » said attacker Cody Gakpo in January, asked about the changes under lock. « In phases we want to keep the ball to create seriously great opportunities to break the opponent. »

That makes Liverpool more varied, says Carey. They now have several weapons. Because as soon as there is room, they can go via Klopps heavy metal-Switch also quickly switch and launch attackers Salah or Gakpo. « That they master those different styles is a nightmare for opponents. Whatever they try, Liverpool now has an answer more often than under Klopp, when they tried the same thing every time. »

The more controlled playing method under lock, with a lot of attention for position play, ensures that players have more energy as soon as they lose the ball, Gakpo said. Then they can « be on top of it » and try to recapture. « Tactical is that the biggest plus point how competitions are being approached now. »

Over a longer period, this playing style is ‘more sustainable’, Carey thinks. Liverpool had relatively few injuries this season, a big contrast with last season under Klopp. The smart way in which Last Fysical Managet team was an important reason for Liverpool to choose him. In their analysis by the trainer, they saw that the number of injuries at Feyenoord was also limited in his three years.

The threat of Salah

Slot subtly pushed with players. In the absence of alternatives, he made offensive midfielder Ryan Gravenberch a inspector – the ‘six’ in Jargon. It turned out excellently: through the dribbles and the agile turning away Gravenberch, Liverpool can create a surplus in the axis. This made Gravenberch, reserve under Klopp, the discovery of this season.

Star attacker Mo Salah makes one of his best seasons in years – with 33 goals and 23 assists in all competitions. That depends on the way he is positioned. Much is aimed at coming in as often as possible in the one-to-one situations, then he is particularly dangerous. Teammates make many depth runs from his back – overlap and underlaps – to ‘pull’ opponents. In this section, Slot explicitly trained in the preparation.

Salah gets a lot of freedom, more than an attacker under the demanding ending probably ever received. He has to do less in defensive work. « Slot wants to ensure that Salah plays as deep as possible, that he can get the ball in those dangerous zones, » says Carey. This was clearly visible in a Champions League duel against Lille: Salah lingers in the front when Lille attacks, then anticipates the ball at lightning speed when Liverpool conquers the ball and scores from that counter.

It shows how slots man-management Is with elite players – so something different laws apply there. At the same time, he showed himself critical if necessary. Such as in the lack of labor of striker Darwin Nunez and the inconsistency of vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold. And with a 0-1 resting position against low-flyer Southampton, Slot is so angry that he changed three players-which he rarely does.

Flexible outside the field

He gave Gakpo confidence in his permanent position, left in the front. Under Klopp, Gakpo regularly played with little success as a center striker. Back on the left, he experiences his best season so far at Liverpool. « It’s all in the details, » wrote Gakpo The Players Tribune. « It is things like that that have to fall into place at the right time. It all has to click. »

It also did that outside the field. Slot moves easily in the media, with a healthy dose of self -confidence and sometimes some dry humor. With a game of padel with football icon Gary Lineker, after an interview for the BBC, Slot takes the lead smoothly and hands over a Liverpool shirt.

He had setbacks. An outburst of lock against a referee after a late equalizer of city rival Everton was punished with two duels suspension and 84,000 euros fine – and caused a lot of noise. The elimination in the FA Cup against Plymouth Argyle, active on the second level, was painful and was able to charge himself because he left home for (too) many basic forces. The hopeless loss in the League Cup final against Newcastle United and the elimination in the Champions League against the strong Paris Saint-Germain, show that there is still a lot of room for improvement.

Those worries were pressed to the background on Sunday evening. Liverpool celebrated the twentieth national title – and Anfield once again sang the name of Arne Slot from Bergentheim in Overijssel.

To share

Mail the editors