Neville praises ´clinical and brutal´ Slot in Liverpool triumph

Gary Neville praised Liverpool head coach Arne Slot for his ruthless approach in their win against Ipswich Town on Saturday.

Slot, who was taking charge of his first competitive fixture as the new Reds boss, watched on as his side struggled in their Premier League opener at Portman Road.

Liverpool registered an expected goals (xG) total of 0.09 from their three shots on target, winning 47.4% of the 97 duels they contested in the opening 45 minutes.

The Dutchman chose to withdraw Jarell Quansah for Ibrahima Konate at half-time, with his side improving after the break as Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah struck to secure the triumph.

Quansah won four of his eight contested duels, while also being successful in two of his four aerial duels, something Slot said was a key factor in his substitution.

“The first thing I said (at half-time) is that we don’t need to speak about tactics if you lose so many duels,” Slot told TNT Sports.

“And that’s what we did, not that Jarell (Quansah) lost every duel – many of us lost too many duels but I think we needed Konate to win these long balls through the air from their number nine.”

First @premierleague match
First @premierleague win pic.twitter.com/qovukj1Thl

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) August 17, 2024

Speaking on the Gary Neville Podcast after Manchester City’s 2-0 win over Chelsea on Sunday, the former defender delivered his verdict on the decision.

“I thought Arne Slot was quite tough on Quansah,” he said. “It is [a big call]. I mean subbing someone at half-time is big and I do not think it is done lightly by managers.

“It was the way after the game as well, he was quite blunt about the way he answered it and there was no holding back.

“So, I think there is an element of him being quite clinical and brutal and he was reacting to the game and what was happening.

“He felt like they needed to win the duels, that was his main thought behind the decision.

“It worked, you have to say, Liverpool were a lot better in the second half and it was a good win for them.”