Manager says the “biggest thing you can win” is to play good football
Liverpool manager Arne Slot has claimed that playing nice football is better than winning trophies, in a controversial claim that will not go down well with supporters.
Slot is already on a knife’s edge after following up his title-winning debut season with a poor campaign that has left the club in sixth place and fighting for the Champions League spots.
“As a manager, you can win the league, Champions League, the FA Cup or the League Cup but the biggest thing you can win is that you can play the nicest football to watch,” Slot said on Liverpool’s YouTube channel.
“Although, at this moment in time, fans might argue a little bit. It is absolutely something that I am aiming for.
“I always want to have the ball, I want it to be intense and want the fans to like what they see.
“Not all of our fans see it as a joy to watch and the hardest thing is I even understand, I agree with them.
“Trophies is one thing but being a team, club or a manager that stands for good football, is in the long-term worth more.”
Liverpool suffered a run of nine losses in 12 games last autumn, although they have finally arrested their slide and a 6-0 win over Qarabag to qualify for the Champions League last 16, followed by a 4-1 win over Newcastle last weekend, suggests the team is on an upward trajectory.
However, rivals Manchester United and Chelsea are also in form and are both fourth and fifth in the Premier League table, meaning Liverpool may yet fail to qualify for a place among Europe’s elite next season.
Liverpool legend and pundit Jamie Carragher warned last week that, despite winning the league last season, Slot may be fired if he fails to qualify for the Champions League this term.
Carragher said: “If you don’t qualify for the Champions League, having won the league the season before and spent as much as Liverpool, I don’t think you’ve got a leg to stand on.”
