by Liverpool boss Arne Slot expects Pep Guardiola to find a solution to Manchester City’s problems and says his ability to innovate is what makes the Catalan the best manager in football.
The Reds, fresh from a superb 2-0 win over Real Madrid, welcome Guardiola’s opponents to Anfield on Sunday with a chance to move 11 points clear at the top of the Premier League – a margin that the midfielder City’s Ilkay Gundogan admitted could end their hopes. a fifth consecutive title even at this early stage.
City had lost five in a row before Tuesday’s Champions League match against Slot’s former team Feyenoord, then surprisingly blew a 3-0 lead by conceding three in the final 15 minutes of a draw 3-3.
Check out our gallery as attention quickly turned to Manchester City after our win against Real Madrid 📸
–Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 28, 2024
Their fragility is obvious but, even with Liverpool top of the Premier League and Champions League table, Slot will take nothing for granted ahead of the weekend.
“I don’t think anyone over the last eight or nine years, maybe more, would have said that with City, home or away, the word easy never comes when you think of City,” he said. said Slot.
“It’s still a very, very good team and one of the reasons why Pep Guardiola is one of the best in the world, I think the best reason, is that he always finds solutions to his problems.
“His problem now is maybe Rodri is out, but we all know he will find solutions and their form will return. Hopefully after Sunday…
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he had another brilliant idea.” He was the one who started playing with inverted full-backs, then with a central defender as a number six. This is why he inspired so many managers.
“He proposed it, we thought it was crazy and then it worked so we all tried to do the same. If there’s anyone who can come up with something new, that’s great him.
The opportunity for Liverpool to take advantage of City’s predicament is clear and their visitors will hardly relish a trip to a ground where, even at full strength, they have won just twice in 27 Premier League matches.
“Typically, if you’re going up against one of your competitors, it’s always a big moment,” Slot said. “It doesn’t have much to do with the number of points they have but these teams have always been very close to each other and these games are always very important, just like Arsenal or Chelsea.
“But they are only important if you win against all the other teams, so every game is very important to win, for them and also for us.”
City’s plight has highlighted an injury list that is headlined by Rodri but goes further with Mateo Kovacic, Ruben Dias, John Stones and Oscar Bobb, while Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku are among those still working on their way back.
But Liverpool have also faced significant injuries. Trent Alexander-Arnold will be fit to return this weekend, but Alisson and Diogo Jota remain out, while fresh doubts remain over Wednesday’s man of the match, Conor Bradley and Ibrahima Konate.
“People only talk about injuries if the results aren’t there, so it’s a good thing if people don’t talk about our injuries,” Slot said. “But the moment you start losing, it’s because of kick-off times on a Saturday afternoon or injuries.
“We have some very important players injured but if the substitutes work well, it’s normal that people don’t talk about it.”
