Brighton v Liverpool: Arne Slot pre-match press conference

Just gave your thoughts on Eric Tenhard, obviously for leaving into position as Manchester United manager and Ruben, this story taking Internet charge. Yeah, you can, of course, he's a Dutch manager. Just as it makes it even harder for me, for us as Dutch people, always your first four foughts out with the person we are. We are all in this job. So we know that it can happen. But if it happens, it's especially because I know I'm a little bit and I know how much work he puts into it. And then to get this news for him is of course a pity. And but we also know, especially us coming from Holland, how well he did at Ajax and that he won two trophies over here. So we will see him I think, in the near future somewhere at a big club again. But at this moment, it's for him and his family. It's of course, yeah. Tragedies, maybe a bit too much to say, but it's a big disappointment for your squad at the moment. Jota, Chieza, kind of Bradley. Are they likely to figure how far away I'll be from from a return? The ones you just mentioned, Connor is training with us again, so he could maybe be in a squad tomorrow. Jota not Ellison not Harvey, Elliott not and Federico, I'm not expecting him to be in the squad tomorrow as well. How long do you think for? Yeah, that's always difficult to say because he goes a bit up and down. So sometimes he's there with us trying a few days and then he goes out. He goes out for an injury again. So I don't want to put days or weeks on it because I think we just have to make sure he gets in the best possible shape and don't put any pressure on him by coming up with dates. Looking at this competition, the game you've already played, obviously the starting line up from the win over Bournemouth, only Kelleher and Nunez then started the cup win over West Ham and then from West Ham game only then Jotter started the league win over Wolves. So how likely are you to do something kind of similar with regards to team selection this week, bearing in mind it's also a double header against Brighton? Yeah, I don't think it's possible to do the same as we did against the West Ham for the simple reason that we got some injuries. So we don't have maybe enough players to change them all. If I wondered that we've played on Sunday against Arsenal, yesterday there was mostly recovery for everyone. So today when we come in and we and we have to come in as we speak, we will find out how they all are and then we have to make a decision who's going to start. But I think if you look at our schedule and the amount of times that we have less days to recover compared to our opponent, that's that's not on Saturday because we play Brighton tomorrow, but Brighton played Saturday and, and, and we've we've Oliva Kushni, it's the same day play Friday, we play Saturday. So it might be a moment for us to also see some other players. But like, like I said, we have to our first have to know how fit everybody is. I just ask as well, this starts, I think it's five games in around 11 days. How do you prepare for that? And, and does that mean you have to sort of select games that have more prominence? No, I think always the next game is the most important. So you try to bring to, to pick a team, to select a team that is best capable of winning that game. And sometimes that means because they've played so many games, you change one or two or a few more players. How to prepare them for that is not, that's not what you do today or tomorrow. That's mostly what you've done already in pre season and all the weeks leading up to this schedule. Those are the weeks you try to prepare them for these weeks. And you do this by training sessions. Of course. Endo came off the bench and I know he started the previous round in this competition. Is this a chance for him to maybe start? And also, when you're making these changes, how do you keep those players that may be struggling for minutes happy in this world? The last thing is not always easy. And because they all want to play and it would be strange for me if they are all happy if they don't play. But they are professionals, they know that these things can happen and they also see that the players that play in their position do really well. So that is mostly with Wata, but it's also with Joe Gomez and Gerard Kwanzaa that are in competition with Ryan, with with IBU and Refresio. So they understand and they see how well these players play and that they also stay fit till the last minute of the game. But I think Wata is one of the players that that might be in the line up because for it, because the season is going to be so long on the and we will need him during the season and therefore he needs once in a while playing time as well. He fortunately has this playing time with the national team, but it helps if he once in a while gets a game with us again. And I really liked him against the West Ham. And what I admire about him or what I respect about him is his personality. Because two times he had to come in 5 minutes before the end. And in my managerial career I sometimes have seen that players if they come in 5 minutes before the end, they come in with a face like this and play like that. But every time when we need him, even if it's for 5 minutes, he shows up for the team, for his teammates and for himself. So I think he also, for that reason, he deserves to play tomorrow. Yeah, tomorrow, yeah. Hi Arne, you mentioned after the Arsene match your admiration for Darwin newness and his ability to come in and play three games after not having played a lot and to play with such energy and aggression. You also kind of mentioned he was the only recognised striker available, so with that in mind I was wondering about some of the other options. We saw Cody Gak Pope 15 minutes of the game against Leipzig, but he seems to have been more rejuvenated in his old left wing role. We've also seen Luis Diaz, the most solid place essentially during a Liverpool career. I noticed Jane Dance was walking into the building earlier today. I wonder whether or not he's coming to play. If he's training for the first season, you could become the manager over here. Do we have any other option to play as a nine as well? Because you're giving me a lot already. But I mean, I'm not offering my own sense. OK. I don't know if that's smart. No, I think, what about Darwin? I think I gave him credit for the fact that he worked so hard in previous weeks where he didn't play a lot to be able to play three times, you know, in in a row and I think free, free games in a day. So that says a lot about him. But it also says a lot about the quality of our performance staff and medical staff that we were able to, to give him the right sessions to prepare him in the right way. But you always need to play it to buy in because you can give him the right sessions, but if he doesn't give everything, then it's very difficult for him to do what he did. So also with him, it was for it was a good thing that his ban for the Uruguay team was cancelled so he could play. There are two games that helps probably as well for him to play the way he did. And I'm not talking about the quality played with, but the intensity he played with and the quality was also good. So there was a positive thing. Yeah. It's is a pity that the Joker Jota is not available and Federico Case has also not available because they were, in my opinion, the most logical number Nines. Maybe not in yours, but but still we have some other options with for the ones you just said. Do you expect Jotter to be back before the November international break? No. Yeah. Eddie the same. Yeah. That hasn't gone through my mind at all. I think the first and foremost is that he gets fit again and then we can see where he is. And I think there were also reports in, in, in, in in Italy. What I meant about him was that he missed preseason and in preseason that he was on low intensity sessions because he had to train with three or four players apart from the group. So that is what I said. And then going from there to the high to a high intensity league, to a high intensity playing style is difficult in general for every player, but especially if if you had a preseason like this. So we knew this before. So we knew we had to be really careful and adjust where we could to hit to his individual needs. But it hasn't been perfect yet. So we're trying to find the right way of building him up without overloading him and that it has been difficult till now but well I have to fully confidence that that will happen and that's that. And 1st be fit. It's something that also goes through my hat and I haven't made a decision yet. So we will see tomorrow. There's also a decision you take also you include your goalkeeper coach with that. But in the end I have to make that decision. And I I also want to hear how fit the Queef is at the at the moment. He played many games. So let's wait and see what decision I make tomorrow. I assume the club follows this progress very detailed because I know how professional this club is. If you ask me, I'm in a program from game press conference, frame press conference sometime have some time to train with the boys as well. So I I wasn't able to see his game during the weekend. But it's good to hear that he made some good shapes. But I not surprised to hear that because we knew that we bought a very good goalkeeper with him. Just going to ask what you thought the main threats from Brighton will be tomorrow? Very good idea about football for many years already. So I like the playing style a lot with the former manager already and and and and and and with this one as well. And I think what makes the club Brighton in my opinion special is that maybe not the most money in the league when they buy the players, but they always find the right ones. So there's a lot of quality. Although also for them the transfer fees go up a bit, but they are not spending 100 million on the players. So they always find the right ones and so many quality players to pick and a very good playing style. Just obviously the Cubs a chance he used young players sometimes. You know, she used a lot of a lot of them to in the summer to to maybe get game time. But when you do get into these and you're looking at the squad, is that the difficult balance to try and know how many to let go and how many to sort of keep it round the door? Yeah, yeah, that is sometimes difficult because in certain situations you would prefer to keep them here because then they can train every day with you and you can you can implement in the best possible way your playing style. But if that also means that they're hardly play, that will normally also lead not to the progression you are hoping for. So that is the balance we always try to find with our players. Also have a very talented ones with then. And then sometimes that means you you bring them on a loan. Stefan by Cities was a very good example to that. And then you hope to see that he plays a lot and then he already played a few games. And then it's very pleasing in this particular situation that he went to a very good manager as well with the pine liners that that knows this club also. So and for Ben Doke it's similar also went to a very good manager and if to a very good playing style. So it's a balance we need to find. Do we want to play them on a regular basis or once in a while and keep with us. And we have to keep where we have to be aware of our own interests. So we can't let everybody go that doesn't play all the time. And there Tyler Morton is a good example of that, which is a quality, quality player good enough to play everywhere around the league, but is in competition with so many good midfielders over here. But yeah, like you see now with our, we've got 6 forwards, two of them are injured, so only four left. And with the schedule we have, that's sometimes a bit of a worry for me. So maybe we should bring Ben Doe back.