Arne Slot shrugs off Salah questions as he discusses Madrid and City double header
26/11/2024
Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, UK
26/11/2024
Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, UK
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00:00He's already sitting there.
00:06He's been there since Sunday.
00:08Could be changed from position.
00:10I will ask the question.
00:12And you can answer mine.
00:14Probably not.
00:19Any first couple?
00:21I think you probably expect what's coming next.
00:24Obviously there were a few quotes from Mo at the weekend
00:27saying that he hadn't been offered a new contract
00:29and he's more out than in at the moment.
00:31How do you see the situation
00:33and what are you being told about how contract negotiations are going?
00:40Indeed, people tell me about this,
00:42but I've said many times we don't share this over here.
00:44At least I don't share this over here.
00:47The only thing I can say is if I look at my line-ups,
00:50Mo is more in than out.
00:56That quote I can give you.
00:59That said, when a player speaks out like that, Arno,
01:02does it cause an issue in terms of a distraction
01:05when it comes to big games like this?
01:07And is there a genuine fear from yourself
01:10that you could lose Mo in the summer now,
01:12because his numbers are obviously still up there
01:14where you would want them to be?
01:16Yeah, definitely we want his numbers to be where they are at the moment,
01:20because those are the numbers Mo always has had and still has,
01:23so that's the positive thing.
01:25I don't think he's distracted at all.
01:28I haven't seen that after the United game where he had some comments,
01:32I haven't seen that after a post you told me about,
01:35afterwards he just kept on scoring.
01:37I didn't see anything today,
01:39he's just fully focused on the game tomorrow,
01:42and I think these kind of things are inside here and probably in the media,
01:47and all our fans talk about it, which is completely normal.
01:50But if he would have been at the AXA today,
01:52I don't think any player talked about it,
01:55at least not when I was there.
01:57Maybe they always give each other a bit of a stick,
02:00so maybe they did this now as well.
02:02But players are also focused on the short-term,
02:05and that's Madrid and that's City,
02:08and by the time most contracts are extended,
02:12players don't look at it that way.
02:15We as a club, of course, do, but the players don't.
02:18I don't think there's any distraction at all for him or for the players,
02:22and definitely not for me,
02:24because I worked yesterday on preparing the team in the best possible way,
02:29and there was not one time in my mind that I thought,
02:31oh, I'm sitting here tomorrow talking about them.
02:39Arno, what does Liverpool-Real Madrid conjure up in your mind?
02:43It's a big European clash, what's your feeling about this game?
02:48Yeah, it's a big game.
02:51I think Real Madrid and Manchester City dominated Europe and the league
02:57for a few years now, combined with Liverpool,
03:01because Liverpool was always up there as well competing with these two clubs.
03:05So it's a special week for us, especially because we played two times at home.
03:10But if this week is done, again a big week is coming up,
03:14Newcastle away and the Merseyside derby.
03:19So if you are Liverpool you always play big games,
03:23but these two are special because these three clubs have dominated the league
03:28in Europe for so many years recently, so that's a special week to play.
03:34Arno, good afternoon.
03:35I would like to do this in Dutch, but I think they'll be very angry at me,
03:37but please answer in Dutch if you want.
03:39I will ask the question in English.
03:40You're extremely popular here,
03:42and the results have been amazing in the first couple of months.
03:44Can you tell something about how it has been for you the first couple of months here,
03:48and what is the reason you think of the great success you're having
03:51in the first couple of months as a Liverpool manager?
03:54I think I'm extremely popular in Holland as well.
03:59No, only in Rotterdam.
04:01No, results have been really good, and results are always done by the players.
04:06And if they have very good results, that's always good for the manager
04:10and for the press officer and for everyone who works at the club.
04:15But we also know how much effort we have to put in to win these games,
04:19and that's why we always have to give credit to the players
04:22that put these efforts in to get these results.
04:26And as a result of that, players are popular, like you just heard,
04:30because Mo is quite popular over here,
04:34and maybe the manager is part of that result as well.
04:37And Feyenoord are watching tonight?
04:39Yes, because they play City and we play City on Sunday,
04:42so I'm definitely going to look at City against Feyenoord.
04:48You're coming up against one of the great managers of this era in Carlo Ancelotti,
04:53your thoughts on facing him, and what would it mean to you,
04:56especially given how well you've started here,
04:58were you to beat one of the best tomorrow?
05:01That you have to ask me after the game if we were able to win from them,
05:05but that is a very difficult thing, not only for Liverpool,
05:09but for every club that has played them in Europe,
05:12because they can win in so many different styles, in so many different ways,
05:17that's the better way to put it.
05:19That's why they won this competition so many times,
05:22because they can win to be really dominant and outplay the opponent,
05:26but if it's a difficult game, they always find a way to win the game
05:31or to go to the next round, and that's what makes them special.
05:35Also, of course, because they are always having great individual players,
05:40great quality, but that's the nicest thing of tomorrow,
05:43that's why it's so busy over here,
05:45because Liverpool have some great players at the moment and for recent years as well,
05:49so that's why we're all looking forward to the game tomorrow.
05:52Are you able to give this game full 100 per cent focus,
05:55given there is another huge one against Manchester City to come?
05:58Will that be on your mind at all in the next 24 hours?
06:01I think the answer was Sunday against Southampton,
06:05where you could argue if the next game is Roma or City,
06:09are the players really ready to perform, or are they looking at the next game?
06:14No, they didn't. Of course, I know we conceded two goals,
06:17but if you look at those two goals,
06:19the effort we did to prevent the other team from scoring was there.
06:22We were in both situations a bit unlucky,
06:25but the moment Robbo made the tackle,
06:27I think there were six or seven players from us around the ball.
06:30The moment they scored the second one,
06:32there were eight players from us inside and out of the 18-yard box.
06:35So we are not distracted by next opponents, we're only focused on the next game,
06:39and that is now Real Madrid.
06:42If you then look at the next one, I don't think any football player would do that.
06:47Everybody just enjoys it to play tomorrow against Madrid,
06:52especially here at Anfield.
06:54Hi, Arne. This is the fourth consecutive Champions League campaign
06:58that Liverpool have faced Real Madrid, and the fifth out of the last seven times.
07:01As Andy Robertson referenced when he was sitting up there a minute ago,
07:04Liverpool haven't won any of them in that time.
07:06When you're trying to plan for this game,
07:08do you go back to some of those games and maybe pick out some of the positive moments,
07:11for example, Kennate's performance in the 2022 final,
07:14or maybe even going 2-0 up in the last time they came to Anfield?
07:18Or do you just draw a line under it all,
07:20try to get rid of all the potential emotional, psychological baggage,
07:23and just say it's a brand-new game, start from scratch?
07:28You've told me so many things that I only thought,
07:30all your questions are always an effort to replace me in the future,
07:33because the knowledge you have about football and data is enormous.
07:38I wasn't aware of the fact that we played them so many times,
07:42I was aware of the fact two years ago they were, if I'm correct,
07:46I say they because I was not part of it, but we were 2-0 up, I think.
07:50And I think I even used that game to my team at the final at that moment,
07:55saying Madrid always finds a way of winning that game,
07:58because the moment it was 2-0 up,
08:01no-one would have expected that game would end up being 5-2 for Madrid.
08:05But that is what makes them so special, that they can turn games around like that,
08:10but they can also take the ball tomorrow and just dominate you from the start.
08:14And probably one of the reasons is that they have a great manager for years already,
08:18and they have great individuals as well,
08:20and that makes them one of the best, maybe their best club in the last five to ten years.
08:29Just to check on team news, I saw Trent in training today,
08:32is he ready to start? And then a few of the others, Federico, the likes of those sort of people.
08:37Yeah, it's funny that you talk about our injuries,
08:40because most people only ask about the injuries we have.
08:43But we also have a few recently.
08:46Trent is in the squad, but he will not be available to start.
08:51He can maybe make a few minutes in an ideal world, he maybe doesn't,
08:56but if it's really necessary he can make a few minutes tomorrow,
09:01but he's not going to start.
09:03And then Federico is not in the squad yet, he's training with us,
09:07not the whole session, but mostly one or two parts of the session.
09:11Javier is in the team but hasn't played for a long time competitive football,
09:16so he's there, but of course not ready to start.
09:19Alisson is not there yet, Djervo is not there yet.
09:22Do I forget anyone?
09:25Costas is not there.
09:27Yeah, he's having an injury as well, so it's quite a list for us as well.
09:33Mister, how are you? Dario Araujo for Caliente TV.
09:39Yesterday we learnt about the injury of Vinicius.
09:44Are you making special plans to approach the game without Vinicius Junior,
09:52compared to what you would have done if you'd been fit and playing?
09:56So do you approach it differently without Vinicius in the line-up?
10:01Yes, definitely.
10:04We approach it differently because a new player is going to play for him
10:08with different qualities.
10:10So we knew when Vinicius would have started,
10:13I had to prepare them for him and Mbappé and all the others,
10:16but they are probably the main attacking threat for them.
10:20Now, with him not playing, we have to expect something else,
10:23and I think he played almost every game for Madrid,
10:26so it's again quite difficult for us now to understand what we can expect.
10:31But what we do know what we can expect is 11 players with great quality,
10:36and we try to prepare them in the best possible way.
10:39But, yeah, will Bellingham play as a 10?
10:41Will he play from the left? Will he play from the right?
10:43Will André come in? Will Culler start?
10:46They have so many options, which now is a bit more difficult for us
10:50to see what they're going to do.
10:52I think I could have come up with their line-up,
10:55now it's going to be a bit of a surprise for us maybe.
10:58But the thing we do know is that we play 11 great players and a very good team.
11:04We've got time for a couple more.
11:15Hi, Arni, how are you? Sergio, from El Desmarque.
11:18Hi.
11:20Going back to the subject of injuries, no Vinicius.
11:25Trent, mind you, but he's not starting.
11:28Mbappé is going to be there.
11:31What do you think of his start to the season?
11:34Was you expecting more from him?
11:38Where do you like to see him be most?
11:41As a nine or stuck out on the left-hand side?
11:46Those are a lot of questions about the team we face and my opinion about them.
11:51The only thing I can tell you is I'm not bothered about what is his best position.
11:57The only thing I'm bothered about is his quality,
12:00and we have to face that quality and we have to play him in the best possible way.
12:04But he's shown so many times that he's so difficult to defend for his country,
12:09for Paris Saint-Germain and also for Real Madrid.
12:12He's one of the best players football has at the moment.
12:17If Vinicius would have played, that would be the second one,
12:21one of the best players football has at the moment.
12:24Now it's Mbappé who's still there.
12:28I'm not the manager of Madrid, so it's not up to me what his best position is.
12:33I think in every position he plays he's one of the best players in the world,
12:39so we have to be ready for him.
12:42Arne, for your friends from Zekosport, you're in the shape of your life,
12:47speaking perfect English with everyone, you're winning, the fans are singing,
12:51it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
12:54What do you experience from this? Did you know that?
13:00No, I didn't.
13:01Good to know.
13:02But how much do you experience that yourself and how big are the nerves for tomorrow?
13:08Like I just said, I didn't know this and I don't follow how popular I am,
13:13if I am or not.
13:15The only thing I bother about is the next opponent, and that's Madrid,
13:18and how to prepare the team in the best possible way, like I've said many times.
13:22So that's my main focus.
13:24Now my family is coming over, so if I hurry up a bit
13:27I have to do some groceries for them as well, and then go home.
13:34And that is where my main focus is, and not about the songs they sing for me,
13:39although it sounds quite nice.
13:42But it's nice to be in this position, it's nice to work at this club,
13:45and it's nice this week, it was nice last week, and it will be nice next week,
13:50as long as we keep on winning.
13:52Just one here, then the final one.
13:56Arne, I just wanted to ask you one more about Mo Salah.
13:59Jamie Carragher said that Salah was selfish for speaking out,
14:03and that he should have been fully focused on Liverpool Football Club.
14:06I just wonder what you made of that comment,
14:08and I know you said that he's not distracted and it's not a distraction for Liverpool,
14:12but I just wonder if you have any concern as well
14:14as to whether it might develop into a distraction
14:17if Salah continues to express his disappointment publicly?
14:22I focus a bit more on what else he said.
14:24He said that he was one of the five best players Liverpool ever had,
14:28and I completely agree with him, which is not an easy thing,
14:31because we had so many great players at this club.
14:34So I don't think it distracts Mo at all.
14:39Maybe it brings even the best out of him, if you look at his performances until now.
14:47Like I said already a few times, my main focus is the next game,
14:51and if we had that game, another big game is coming up,
14:54and if we had that game, it just keeps on going.
14:57So I talk to Mo about what I expect from him, like I do with all the other players.
15:05He's in a good place at the moment, and I said before,
15:09I'm not distracted at all by his comments, and I don't feel his teammates do.
15:15So it's nice that we have a story in the media,
15:19so you guys have some work now as well.
15:22Last one, Karl.
15:28Yeah, hurry up, I have to do the groceries.
15:34You spoke about the way Madrid always find a way to win.
15:38Do Madrid carry a different aura to other teams?
15:42Do they bring a psychological advantage into European games?
15:46I think they might do. I cannot talk for all the other teams they face,
15:52but I said when I worked at my former club many times
15:56that we should take the example of Madrid,
15:59that they always find a way to win, they can win it in different ways.
16:03If it's difficult for them, they can still win a game,
16:06and that's probably one of the reasons, apart from them having so much quality,
16:10that they won this tournament a lot.
16:14So, yeah, I think...
16:18I can only speak for myself, but maybe the players might feel the same
16:21if we are fortunate enough to be one goal up or even more up,
16:25we still are aware of the fact,
16:28especially because of what we experienced two years ago,
16:31that the game will never be done until the referee blows his whistle.
16:34In general it is like this,
16:36but I think we all feel it against Real Madrid a bit more
16:40than to some other clubs we face.
16:43Thank you, everyone.
16:44HE SIGHS
16:50Sorry.