The fortunes of Liverpool and Manchester City could not be further apart at the moment.
Few would have believed that Arne Slott would win 17 of his first 19 games in charge, while no one would have predicted the situation City found themselves in.
Liverpool’s dream start to the season continued this week, but it was no ordinary victory as beating Real Madrid on Wednesday night made it another of those magical nights at Anfield to retain top spot in the Champions League.
Conor Bradley’s return to Kylian Mbappe was as big a statement as beating the reigning European champions.Liverpool head into Sunday’s clash in fine form, full of momentum, confidence and belief.
Slott, however, is playing down expectations and is in no way underestimating City’s challenge, no matter how heavily the odds are in Liverpool’s favour.
“Of course we like to be in this position, but we also know that City don’t like where they are now. And when you’ve won the league four times in a row, that probably means it’s a dangerous starting position for both of them. for: teams”.
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Sky Sports’ Adam Bate and Vinny O’Connor reflect on Liverpool’s dominant win over Real Madrid in the Champions League.
I asked him if this could be a dangerous weekend and he agreed.
“A dangerous weekend. They will want to show why they have won the championship four times in a row and we want to show that we can compete against them and that we want to be their competition for a number of years : They’ve always been above us, except for one season, which is why this game, like Real Madrid, is such a great game to look forward to.”
We want to show that we can compete against them and that we want to be their competitor.
Slott spoke of his admiration for Pep Guardiola in an interview 18 months ago, telling me how he hopes Barcelona will be on TV on Sunday night so he can watch and immerse himself in the thoughts of the serial winner and influential coach.
Sunday, December 1 at 3:30 p.m
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Look at his history. It’s not just about the trophies you win. It’s about how he lets his team play and the new things he brings to the game always adapts his playing style to the players he has.
“He’s coming up with new ideas, so every time the season starts you’re like, ‘Okay, what’s he come up with this season?’
“He always finds a way to get the best out of his players. Now, of course, we all know that Rodri is injured, so now he has to find a new idea. how can it bring the best out of the current players.
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Liverpool manager Arne Slott provides an update on his injury back-to-back, the Premier League standings and previews Pep Guardiola’s upcoming clash against Manchester City this weekend.
“I know for sure it will work again, and for me City have been really unlucky in the last five or six games. So I’ve not only analyzed their results, I’ve analyzed Tottenham’s game as well. against they could have been 2-3 after 20 minutes, they won 1-0 and had chances then missed two.
“Yeah, the final will probably never happen again in football history. Now that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it was the first time, so that probably tells you something.”
Even the best City sides have struggled at Anfield and this is probably the worst game City have to deal with at the moment. Liverpool have dropped points just twice in all competitions.
“I think the mix (of players) is great,” Slott added. “That’s what we appreciated from the beginning of the season. that we have a great mix of character and player quality.
“It’s a great mix of players who are doing really well at the moment. We thought about this before we started this journey together. Me and (sporting director) Richard (Hughes) and the other people involved in it.
“It’s worked out really well so far because we’re in a good place, but we know how difficult the Premier League and the Champions League can be. Who would have thought Manchester City would have the results they’ve had?
“Well, their performance was different from the results, but the results are there. We have to keep going because we have to make sure that we maintain these results as they are now.”
Don’t you feel like you’re in a false position?” I asked. “No,” he answered.
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All 11 goals and assists of Mohamed Salah against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City in the Premier League.
It feels like more than five months since Slot first walked through the gates of the AXA training center in Kirkby. Those first-day nerves soon disappeared what’s new the building, the people, the players.
“But you can have nerves and still act right. I feel a lot more relaxed, a lot more comfortable than my first day.”
Done right, they have. Liverpool certainly don’t look like a team that needs a lot of confidence.
