Mark Lawrenson has given a positive appraisal of Arne Slot from what he’s heard coming out of the Liverpool dressing room.
The Dutchman has taken on the unenviable task of succeeding Jurgen Klopp at Anfield, but a series of encouraging pre-season results and performances – along with an away win in his first Premier League game – has enabled him to get off to an ideal start.
The former LFC defender was speaking on Off The Ball when he declared that the 45-year-old is largely amenable but won’t hesitate to reaffirm who’s boss.
Lawrenson said of Slot: “The rumour and the talk from the dressing room is that he’s very good. He very much talks to everybody about everything. He’s a nice fella, but they reckon he has something about him where he won’t be frightened to make major decisions.”
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Lawrenson’s comments would appear to tally with what we’ve seen of Slot on the touchline and in his dealings with the media.
Much like his predecessor, the Liverpool head coach seems to carry himself with good grace and comes across with an affable personality, but he’ll be straight-up about his opinions not just behind closed doors but also in public.
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There’s been plenty of reaction to his candid post-match verdict after the win over Ipswich on Saturday, when he didn’t pull any punches about his dissatisfaction with the first-half performance, a sentiment which was borne out in his withdrawal of Jarell Quansah at half-time.
The early indications are that Slot strikes the right balance between approachability and authority. He seems like someone who’s easy to get along with, while at the same time not suffering fools gladly and being open and honest with his players.
It’ll take another few weeks at least (possibly months) before a more definitive verdict is established about his work at Liverpool, but for the time being he appears to be hitting the right tone and earning respect very quickly, something which can be hard to achieve as the immediate successor to a club icon.
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The post ‘They reckon he…’ – Mark Lawrenson shares what he’s heard about Arne Slot from inside Liverpool appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.
