Arne Slot makes 'scandalous' Liverpool comment and directly addresses concerns

Arne Slot has confessed that Liverpool's recent slump has been "scandalous" and explained what has aided his team's recovery. Before Saturday evening's 2-0 triumph over Aston Villa at Anfield, the Merseysiders had endured four consecutive defeats as part of a broader spell of six losses in seven matches across all competitions.

The decline in results followed Liverpool's victorious start to the campaign, having won their first seven competitive fixtures of the season. However, following the success against Unai Emery's outfit, secured through strikes from Mohamed Salah and Ryan Gravenberch, the Reds then recorded back-to-back home victories after defeating Real Madrid on Tuesday evening.

On an evening when Trent Alexander-Arnold received a notably hostile reception upon entering as a substitute, Alexis Mac Allister netted the solitary goal of the contest midway through the second period.

Speaking to Ziggo Sport following the match, Slot discussed his team's recent difficulties and disclosed that additional rest for his squad has contributed to their turnaround.

He said: "We've lost far too much in recent weeks, of course, for a club of our level."

"It was a challenging schedule with many away games, with hardly any rest in between.

"Tonight, we played against a team that also had two days off, but at our own Anfield.

"It's fantastic when you play a match like that and then win. Tonight showed once again how important set pieces are in football these days.

"In the Premier League, we've now conceded four like that but, in the Champions League, we've now scored four like that and conceded zero.

"No, I was never worried, but when you lose often, as a manager you're constantly thinking about where you can make adjustments. But you're also aware that many things are going well. Losing so often was scandalous, far from our level."

Speaking to Amazon Prime following the match, Slot added: "Very pleased. It's been [some] tricky weeks for us, many away games, hardly any rest in between every single game.

"Again, we only had two days in between this game but the same was there for Real Madrid. It helps if you can play in front of these fans and you can play in front of Real Madrid because I think that brings the best out of my players and out of our fans.

"A great performance against a team that only lost once all season. And it could have been a bit more, maybe."