People have been so busy picking over the shortcomings of Manchester City, Arsenal and the rest, that Arne Slot and Liverpool haven’t received due recognition for what they have been doing this season.
At the start of the campaign, a post-Jurgen Klopp hangover was expected. Certainly no one was tipping them to be champions and yet now they’re 13 points clear at the top of the Premier League, the talk has suddenly been about how fortunate Slot has been to have inherited such a great bunch of players!
That’s why I think this week’s Champions League tie against a resurgent Paris Saint-Germain is so important.
If Slot can win the domestic title and enjoy success in Europe, it will have to go down as the greatest managerial debut season we’ve ever witnessed, surpassing Jose Mourinho when he burst through Chelsea’s doors as the ‘Special One’ back in 2004.
I’m sure some readers will raise their eyebrows at a former Liverpool player – and someone who once stood on The Kop – demanding more praise for the club.
But the statistics don’t lie. Liverpool have lost only four matches all seasons. Two of them — against PSV and Tottenham — didn’t matter because they are still in the Champions League and reached the Carabao Cup Final anyway.
Liverpool are in the midst of a stunning season and are 13 points clear in the Premier League
But I don’t think there hasn’t been enough recognition of what Arne Slot’s side are doing
Slot’s impact could be even greater than Jose Mourinho’s first season at Chelsea in 2004-05
It was a virtual reserve team that lost at Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup which makes the home Premier League defeat against Nottingham Forest, back on September 14, the only consequential loss with a full line-up.
What is even more worrying for Liverpool’s rivals is they’re not running out of steam.
They had as much energy against Newcastle on Wednesday night as in any other game this season. It is a testament to the way Slot’s sides control matches.
This Liverpool don’t waste resources — the balance between attack and defence has been perfect.
They may rely on Salah to sprinkle the stardust more than other great Liverpool teams such as Klopp’s Champions League winners, who had Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino supporting the African and Kenny Dalglish’s trio of John Barnes, Peter Beardsley and John Aldridge in the late 1980s.
But Liverpool also have a tradition of being ruthlessly efficient. The great 1970s and 80s teams often closed down games — the backpass rule was still allowed! — but would point to trophies won every season.
Slot’s style is certainly different, less crowd-pleasing or rousing than either Klopp or Mourinho, but to underestimate the impact he’s had at Anfield is to not understand the game.
Yes, he has had some fantastic players to work with, but he’s also made some extremely shrewd decisions to maximise performances.
The Champions League tie against PSG will be intriguing and is so important for the Reds
I’ve never seen Mohamed Salah smile so much and Slot has dealt with every challenge so far
Who would have thought last August that Ryan Gravenberch would become arguably the best holding midfield player in the world this season?
Or that Cody Gakpo could score 16 goals before March, including important ones against Real Madrid, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham.
Gakpo has flourished because Slot saw something in Luis Diaz that enabled the Colombian to operate centrally on occasions, allowing Gakpo to cause havoc on the left.
Curtis Jones has been allowed to break forward and has blossomed, Dominik Szoboszlai’s confidence has been restored to the superb player when he first arrived. The list goes on.
As for the main man, Mo Salah, I’ve never seen him smile so much. It’s clear his enjoyment of playing in this team has spurred him on to record numbers of goals and assists — and at 32, he’s working harder than ever.
For a less stable manager, it would have been easy to have reacted when Salah, with his contract up in the summer, started giving interviews after matches questioning his long-term future at Anfield.
Slot just continued picking Salah and the Egyptian has kept on winning matches. The Liverpool manager didn’t feel the need to respond and sometimes that is the best way.
Likewise, contract talks between the club and Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold haven’t derailed results, even if Trent as a local player faces the most distractions.
The uncertainty over Salah, Alexander-Arnold and Van Dijk has not impacted results at all
Instead of praising Liverpool, there has been a focus on Man City and Arsenal’s struggles
Slot’s impact in improving certain players like Ryan Gravenberch has been simply remarkable
If Liverpool win the Champions League, it will be the best managerial debut season of all-time
Having topped the 36-team Champions League group, Liverpool might have expected easier opponents than PSG in the last-16. The French champions had to qualify via the play-offs but they are young, hungry and carry a genuine threat in Ousmane Dembele.
I still back Liverpool to go through and fancy either them or Real Madrid to win the tournament. Arsenal’s defence should help them get past PSV Eindhoven but injuries have restricted their chances of going all the way.
I’m also tipping Aston Villa to beat Bruges. It’s a blessing they lost to the Belgians in the group as it will eradicate any sense of complacency. I remember my Liverpool team losing to Bayer Leverkusen in the 2002 quarter-finals. We had underestimated them when the draw was made and they went on to reach the final.
Liverpool have a proud European record and I think the Champions League is the route to Slot getting the acclaim he deserves. Forget, Pep’s problems or Arsenal’s injuries, this relentlessly consistent Liverpool team would be a match for any team in any era.
The Premier League star Tuchel must pick
One name I’m desperate to see in Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad on Friday is the young Arsenal player Myles Lewis-Skelly.
Left-back has been a problem position for England for some time and Lewis-Skelly, and Newcastle’s Lewis Hall, are the best around at the moment and need to be given a chance now in order to feel comfortable by the time the World Cup comes around in the summer of 2026.
Lewis-Skelly is only 18 but is performances this season have proved to me he will be able to perform on the biggest stage. The only thing he lacks is experience, so why not fast-track him now.
Thomas Tuchel has to pick Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly, 18, in his first England squad
Left back has been a problem position and in Lewis-Skelly and Lewis Hall, Tuchel has two top options
He’s left-footed – England suffered when Gareth Southgate used right-footers on the left at the Euros last summer – and can also play in midfield. It’s important in the modern game to have full-backs who can step into midfield when their team has a lot of possession, which England will surely do against Latvia and Albania this month.
The teenager has been shown two red cards this season but I don’t see that as an issue. The first one was rightly rescinded, it was a ridiculous decision, and the second one against West Ham was just one of those instinctive moments after Mohammed Kudus had done well to nick the ball off him.
Lewis-Skelly will learn from that, it wouldn’t worry me at all if I was his manager. He is so gifted on the ball.
Why Fulham must back themselves at Old Trafford
Fulham have a good chance of knocking out Manchester United in the FA Cup on Sunday – if they go for it and don’t change what they’re good at because they’re worried about Ruben Amorim’s side.
At their best, Marco Silva’s team are dynamic and good on the eye. They didn’t have a shot on goal against Crystal Palace last weekend and then switched to a back-three to match up Wolves in midweek.
But even though Manchester United also play with wing-backs, I think Fulham should concentrate on their own strengths because Amorim’s team aren’t playing well enough for them having to change.
I’ll be at Old Trafford covering the game for the BBC. United lack cohesion and confidence despite beating Ipswich on Wednesday. Fulham haven’t been in the FA Cup final for 50 years but this is an opportunity for them to reach the quarter-finals.
