Liverpool legend John Barnes has lauded the Reds for their success under Arne Slot, a feat that Manchester United and Arsenal couldn’t achieve when they attempted to replace their own iconic managers.
Slot faced the daunting challenge of stepping in after Jurgen Klopp. Elsewhere, David Moyes struggled following Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, and Unai Emery didn’t quite fill the void left by Arsene Wenger at Arsenal.
Barnes pointed out that it would have been forgivable if Liverpool’s squad, all signed by Klopp, had seen a dip in performance under Slot. Instead, its push towards an unexpected 20th title is a testament to Slot’s exceptional man-management skills.
According to Barnes, Slot, who is on the brink of becoming the first Dutchman to win an English league title with just a point needed against Tottenham today, has successfully got every player to embrace his philosophy. Slot’s approach is less ‘heavy metal’ than Klopp’s and focuses more on controlling the game through possession.
“It would have been easy for the Liverpool players not to down tools, but to underperform because they would not have been blamed,” Barnes told the Daily Mirror. “People would have said it’s because Klopp isn’t there and Arne Slot isn’t good enough. Whereas the players are taking on board exactly what he wants and we can see the outcome.
“When Wenger left and when Fergie left, there was a dip in those clubs. So Arne Slot has to take a lot of credit for that and so do the players because they bought into what he wanted.”
(Image: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Barnes has lauded Slot’s achievements, highlighting the element of surprise in Liverpool’s success, especially after they finished third last season. He reminisces about the expectations during his time at Anfield in 1988 and 1990 when winning the title was anticipated.
“In history, when you look back, it doesn’t tell you how you won the league, it just says you won the league,” he reflected. “It doesn’t say Klopp left, Man City fell away, there was this contract issue with Salah and Virgil van Dijk and Trent. It’ll just say we won the league.
“The difference is if you look at the glory years of Manchester United under Fergie or ourselves in the 1970s and 80s, we were expected to win the league. Whereas if you look through the dynamics of now, with everything that’s gone on, it’s been a tremendous achievement.”
Barnes remains optimistic about Liverpool’s future and suggests they don’t need to splash cash in the upcoming transfer window. He recounts a tale involving Neil Ruddock and Jimmy Case, a former Liverpool player who had a wealth of trophies to his name.
“Ruddock said to Jimmy, ‘Jimmy, when you’re going to take a corner, is it one hand up for the near post and two hands for the far post?’. And Jimmy said, ‘Listen, son, let’s get a corner first before you worry about that’.
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“So, for the future, let’s win the title first, enjoy it, and then worry about the future when it comes. Fortunately we signed two players, Salah and van Dijk, maybe Trent’s going to go, and maybe they’re going to sign players.
“But we didn’t sign players this season and look at what we’ve done. So the future looks good for Liverpool, particularly with those two signings because they’ll be there for the next two years. If we go into next season with exactly what we have, with no signings, I would be happy.”
Club ambassador Barnes won’t be present for tomorrow’s match at Anfield as he’ll be stationed at Mile 23 of the London Marathon, distributing Lucozade bottles to participants. “I’ll be at what’s called ‘Bring the Energy Zone’, that’s Mile 23,” he explained.
“I’ll be handing out Lucozade bottles and just encouraging people. This was arranged before we knew Liverpool could win the title against Tottenham, but I don’t think they’ll need me!”
Liverpool.com says: Today, when the title should be secured, is a day for savoring and enjoying. Everyone inside Anfield and those watching from elsewhere will do just that, with expectation rightly being that the Reds will get the job done by getting at least a point.
