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ARNE SLOT expressed significant dissatisfaction with his Liverpool players, despite their continued unbeaten record in the Champions League.
A second-half penalty from Mo Salah against Girona ensured a perfect sixth win in six for the Reds, putting them in a favorable position to reach the top eight and avoid the play-off round in February.
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Nonetheless, Liverpool‘s Slot, who welcomed back goalkeeper Alisson after an injury absence, criticized his team for exhibiting a lack of “aggression” during their time in Spain.
He stated: “I’m pleased with the first five matches, but my satisfaction with this performance is far from complete. There are two key issues that stand out.
“When up against a team that plays with a solid grasp of football and knows how to build from the back, like the teams we’ve faced recently—such as City or Real Madrid, it is essential to be incredibly intense to compete effectively.
“However, we let ourselves be easily outplayed, allowing such a team to create numerous challenges for us.
“They have shown this through their performances in the Champions League this season, except for their match against PSV Eindhoven.
“I almost feel for them; they genuinely deserve more points than the three they currently have.
“Moreover, every time we lost the ball, we lacked aggression, allowing them to advance almost to our goal and take shots.
“We had hardly any control in the match. The second half may have been a slight improvement – but I’m trying to look at the positives.”
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Alisson, who returned from a hamstring injury that had sidelined him for more than two months, made five crucial saves before Salah scored a penalty following a VAR review that confirmed a foul by Donny van de Beek on Luis Diaz.
Slot humorously remarked: “We owe Alisson our gratitude for maintaining our clean sheet.
John O’Shea mentions that teams across Europe will be tempted to sign Caoimhin Kelleher from Liverpool
“Perhaps his teammates wanted to ensure he was fit by giving him some action.
“Naturally, that wasn’t the plan, but he demonstrated today just how crucial he is for us. I have consistently emphasized that he is our primary goalkeeper.
“This isn’t to undermine Caoimhin Kelleher, who has performed admirably, but Alisson has been essential for this club for years and has showcased why he is, in my view, one of the best, if not the best, in the world.
“Let’s hope he continues delivering such performances and, more importantly, stays fit.”
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Kelleher, who was eager to leave Merseyside, found himself on the bench in northern Spain despite his contributions to propelling the team to the top of the standings.
Even with Kelleher’s impressive performances—his only error occurring against Newcastle just days earlier—Alisson’s swift return to the starting eleven was always anticipated.
He has rejoined a team that has only lost once this season.
With a four-point lead in the Premier League, Liverpool seems poised to secure a top-eight finish in the Champions League,
thus avoiding the two-legged play-offs in February.
Importantly, the second leg of these matches will occur before Liverpool’s scheduled Premier League clash with Manchester City on February 23.
While Slot’s team can take a rest that week, City may be forced to participate in a play-off.
Regardless, it seems City has fallen out of the title race and Liverpool is becoming increasingly formidable in all competitions.
Moreover, Slot will have the benefit of resting players with minor injuries before their remaining league-stage matches against Lille and PSV Eindhoven in January.
Still, the Dutch manager has slight concerns about his team’s display.
With a crowd capped at around 10,000 due to stadium renovations, only 492 Liverpool fans were in attendance.
To earn points, fans must attend 27 European away matches, including a match against Spartak Moscow back in September 2017. Now that’s dedication.
One player achieving his 235th appearance for Liverpool was Joe Gomez, and astonishingly, he is still searching for his first goal.
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In the fourth minute, he nearly scored a moment he surely dreams of, as Paulo Gazzaniga, known from his time with Spurs and Southampton, showed quick reflexes to tip a header over the bar.
Gazzaniga also denied a well-placed shot from Darwin Nunez, who squandered several other chances in the first half, especially one right before halftime.
This kind of performance from Nunez highlights his frustrating inconsistency.
Slot acknowledged that the Uruguayan is facing a tough stretch, having now gone five matches without a goal.
He explained: “Every striker goes through phases where they score frequently and then times when they struggle to find the net despite trying their hardest.
“We have other players capable of scoring, and Mo did so today.
“We would definitely love to see Darwin score because every striker needs goals, which is why I left him on for so long, but sadly, he couldn’t finish.”
The best opportunity before the goal fell to Girona during their initial attack.
However, for the home side, it was Daley Blind who was presented with the chance—and it will not surprise Manchester United fans that he completely failed to hit the target from six yards.
Liverpool’s European performance following their narrow victory over Girona
Twenty of Liverpool’s last 23 goals across all competitions have been scored in the second half—with nine of their 13 in the Champions League being netted after the break.
They have won five consecutive European away matches for only the third time in their history, previously achieving this in runs concluding in September 1984 and May 2022.
English clubs are unbeaten in their last eight encounters against Spanish teams in the Champions League (W4 D4) since Real Madrid’s 2-0 win over Chelsea in April 2023.
Girona marked the 13th different Spanish team Liverpool has faced, winning against ten of those, with Sevilla, Valencia, and Celta Vigo being the exceptions.
Mo Salah scored his sixth penalty for Liverpool in the Champions League, equalling Steven Gerrard’s record for the most in the club’s history.
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Alisson skillfully saved a follow-up from Alejandro Frances and quickly reacted to prevent a near-post effort from Miguel Gutierrez.
The Brazilian also denied a chance from an offside-looking Bryan Gil.
Nevertheless, his highlight moment came just before halftime when he used both hands to block a powerful shot from former Watford midfielder Yaser Asprilla.
Shortly after the break, Alisson was again in action, stopping a shot from Arnaut Danjuma.
Girona’s defense faced few challenges from the Liverpool attack, which seemed out of ideas when Diaz was brought down on the pitch after colliding with Van de Beek.
French referee Benoit Bastien ordered Diaz to get up, believing he had dived.
However, after Andy Robertson’s shot was saved and resulted in a corner, VAR investigated the incident.
Bastien was called to the monitor and promptly pointed to the spot after reviewing the footage—and Salah confidently placed the penalty, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way.
Liverpool managed to navigate the closing moments without difficulty, recording their 18th win out of 21 under Slot.
Upon arriving in Merseyside, he never anticipated it would be this seamless.
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