"We didn't show our footballing qualities" – Arne Slot on Liverpool's win over Newcastle
Kenley Ward
Dailysports's expert
However, according to the manager, victories like this are extremely valuable.
Details: In yesterday’s second-round Premier League clash, Liverpool traveled away to Newcastle and snatched a 3-2 victory, sealed in the dying moments of the match.
The winning goal was scored by 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha, and Liverpool head coach Arne Slot was left deeply impressed by the match, sharing his thoughts in the post-game interview:
"How do you sum up a night like this? It was a familiar feeling for me. I think I’ve experienced a match like this once before since coming to England – it was away at Everton last season. So much happened, there was total chaos, the home fans were incredibly loud and supportive, and our supporters did everything they could to lift us. The atmosphere was unbelievable, and to stay strong in that kind of environment for so long means more to me than when we start every attack from the back and win 4 or 5-0. These victories matter more to me than the ones where we play beautiful football, because tonight’s game, in my opinion, had nothing to do with tactics or quality football at all. It was a fantastic match to watch, but not because of tactics or footballing quality. It was because, every second, everyone in the stadium was on the edge of their seat. Do these results bring titles? That’s the last thing on my mind right now, to be honest. To win away at Newcastle, you need quality, especially in that atmosphere. Not footballing quality, because we didn’t show that today – except for the last goal we scored. That was a bit like what I see every day in training. But to have the mentality to fight here, in such a hostile stadium – that’s exactly what you need if you want to compete come the end of the season. Winning is something else, but at the very least, to compete, that mentality is essential – and that’s exactly what we showed today," Slot said.
Remarkably, Liverpool led 2-0 during the match and played the entire second half with a man advantage. Yet, the hosts managed to level the score in the 88th minute – but as it turned out, that wasn’t the final twist of the night.
Reminder: It could have ended in disaster: Anthony Gordon was sent off after a reckless foul on Van Dijk
