Arne Slot is heading into his first cup final as Liverpool manager with a weight of expectation on his shoulders.
Indeed, not only do Liverpool head into the Carabao Cup final as favourites, they also head into this game as reigning champions.
Liverpool beat Chelsea in a dramatic cup final 12 months ago. Virgil van Dijk was excellent in that cup final, while Caoimhin Kelleher earned praise against Chelsea too.
Liverpool finished the match with a number of young players on the pitch last year in what was a remarkable showing of the work the Reds’ academy have been doing.
Slot wasn’t at Liverpool last year, but he did have one eye on the cup final, and speaking to Liverpool’s YouTube channel, Arne Slot has shared what he did after the Reds won the cup last year.
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What Arne Slot did after Liverpool’s Carabao Cup final win
Slot spoke about last year’s cup final.
The Liverpool boss says he didn’t watch last year’s final live due to the fact Feyenoord were playing on the same day.
However, he says he caught the end of the game, and after the match, he messaged Pep Lijnders to congratulate him because of how much the Reds’ academy means to the Dutchman.
“Did you watch the final live?” Slot was asked.
“No, we played that day, I remember, but I think the game was later than when we played, so maybe I saw the last parts of it or the highlights,” Slot said.
“I do remember texting Pepijn afterwards because I know how much the academy meant and still means to him. It was a big moment for all these academy players being on the pitch for the final. I do remember texting him, yeah, that was a special day for the club.”
How did Feyenoord get on during Liverpool’s Carabao Cup final win?
Slot wasn’t able to watch Liverpool’s cup final last year in full due to the fact Feyenoord were playing at the same time.
Luckily for Slot, missing out on watching the cup final was worth it as Feyenoord won 2-0 on the day.
Feyenoord beat Almere City 2-0 away from home on that day, and, interestingly, both goals came from Yankuba Minteh – the current Brighton star.
Minteh was linked with Liverpool in the summer.
These two games just go to show the rise that Slot has had over the past year.
12 months ago, Slot was beating Almere City 2-0 in a game that had an attendance of just 4,223.
Now, Slot is about to lead Liverpool out in a cup final in front of 90,000 fans.
Slot will be hoping to do what Jurgen Klopp couldn’t this weekend and win a cup final at Liverpool at his first attempt.
Klopp’s first cup final with Liverpool was a loss to Manchester City in 2016, and Slot will be hoping he can do better on this occasion.
