Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp may have had a hand in altering his style of play slightly and therefore making it easier for the club’s players to adjust to new manager Arne Slot this season.
That’s the view of journalist Simon Hughes in The Athletic, with the writer describing how Klopp had slightly turned Liverpool into more of a possession team from 2020 onwards anyway, perhaps going against his own tactical instincts in the process.
The German tactician had a reputation for playing ‘heavy metal football’ at former club Borussia Dortmund, and his first Liverpool teams tended to press and attack very quickly and aggressively, rather than emphasising the calmer, more possession-based approach of teams like Manchester City or Barcelona.
Still, Hughes feels Liverpool had been moving in that direction under Klopp anyway, which means it’s not that much of a culture shock for this team to now play even more in that style under Slot, who worked like that at former club Feyenoord.
Jurgen Klopp has made life a bit easier for his successor Arne Slot
Discussing the change from Klopp to Slot and whether it’s a surprise to see how well the Dutch tactician has done, Hughes said: “Not really. Given how poorly Liverpool finished last season, it is easy to forget the same group of players produced good results for much of the campaign.
“Too much has been made of the transition from the supposed style of football Jurgen Klopp was delivering to the one Arne Slot wants. Since 2020, Liverpool have become more of a possession-based team and, to some degree, this went against Klopp’s best instincts.
“It means the players were readier for the Slot era than many assumed.”
Slot certainly looks like a great appointment for LFC, with most fans surely not expecting him to get off to such a good start when tasked with replacing such a legendary and widely loved figure at Anfield.