The Athletic wrote an article to comment on the content of Slott's post-game press conference. The article stated that Slott's speech should not have appeared. The good news for Liverpool is that they are not the first defending champion to...
The Athletic wrote an article to comment on the content of Slott's post-game press conference. The article stated that Slott's speech should not have appeared.
The good news for Liverpool is that they are not the first defending champion to suffer four consecutive defeats in the Premier League. Manchester City encountered it last season, Liverpool itself also encountered it in the 2020-21 season, and Leicester City suffered five consecutive losses in the season after winning the championship. The bad news is that none of these teams have come close to defending their title. As mentioned before, it's too early to draw conclusions, but not only have Liverpool lost four games in a row, the team has also exposed a series of problems, and it is difficult to imagine that they will solve these problems before Arsenal can completely open up the gap.
Slaughter's reaction to these defeats was also surprising. He said after the loss to Brentford: "Every game has different problems, other teams have their own way of playing against us, which is a very good tactic. We haven't found a way to deal with it, and it doesn't help that we are down 0-1 every game. They are fighting. They are very good at the top and second attack, and you have to give them credit. If set-pieces are also their strength, it will be very difficult to win."
Perhaps we shouldn't complain about a coach being so honest. From the perspective of a deeper understanding of the game, it is enlightening to hear Slott explain how the opponent defeated Liverpool. Maybe he thinks any coach worth his salt should say that, so it's okay to talk about it. But will it help him? Is it a good idea to tell the next opponent that Liverpool are terrible at dealing with set pieces, long balls, throw-ins and other issues that have caused them problems? Liverpool have enough problems at the moment and they cannot afford to be overly honest from their manager.
