Liverpool’s players had to get used to a significant adjustment over the summer as Arne Slot began his reign as the Reds’ head coach, taking over from the legendary Jurgen Klopp.
After almost nine years under the German, during which the Merseysiders won numerous major trophies and became a force in England and Europe again, his successor knew that he’d have an incredibly hard act to follow.
However, so far the 46-year-old has made the transition look seamless, winning 19 of his first 22 games in charge and guiding his team to the top of the Premier League and Champions League standings.
In an interview with Melissa Reddy for Sky Sports, Trent Alexander-Arnold spoke of how he was awestruck by Slot’s ‘incredible’ attention to detail and obsession for football from the very first day that he met the Dutchman.
The Liverpool vice-captain said of the head coach: “The level of detail he has, I find myself smiling about it because that’s the kind of thing that I really enjoy. It’s just football in a very, very in-depth level.
“I could tell from the first time I met him that I was going to enjoy playing under him and being a part of this. I’m feeling like I’m going to get better and improve and learn so much in such a short space of time and just keep on learning, because I could tell he was football obsessed and the level of detail was incredible.”
For those Liverpool players who’d spent several season playing under Klopp – Trent being one of them – adjusting to Slot could’ve been a massive transition, but it’s clear from the 26-year-old’s testimony that the Dutchman struck the right notes from day one.
There had been a school of thought that the right-back – along with Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah, who are also into the final year of their contracts at Anfield – was holding firm on a decision over his future until he ‘sounded out’ his new boss.
If any such test of character existed for the 46-year-old, he’s since passed it with flying colours, as illustrated by the Reds’ results on the pitch; and his blunt assessment of the team’s performance in the win over Girona in midweek laid bare the standards that he demands of his players.
Slot would’ve been under no illusions as to the task that he faced in trying to live up to Klopp’s extraordinary legacy, but he’s evidently commanded an instant respect and buy-in from a group of winners who’d experienced plenty of success under his predecessor.
Trent has clearly been won over by his new boss, so let’s hope that he’d like to preserve that professional relationship for a good while longer by duly signing a long-term contract extension at Liverpool.
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