'I think': Alan Shearer answers whether there's 'too much hype' over what Arne Slot is doing at Liverpool
Today at 06:00 AM
Liverpool supporters are starting to believe that there could be a special season in store for them.
The Reds have belied pre-season predictions of a Jurgen Klopp-less dip to sit top of the Premier League and Champions League tables.
It is still very early days, but there is little question that what Arne Slot has done at Liverpool so far has been mightily impressive.
To underline that fact, statistics have shown that Slot has made the best start to life at a Premier League club of any manager or head coach in the division’s history.
His tally of 14 wins from 16 games in all competitions surpasses the 13 posted by former Chelsea bosses Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti.
Given the quality within the Liverpool squad, though, some have started to wonder whether what Slot is doing is really such a surprise. And Premier League legend Alan Shearer has now had his say.
Alan Shearer comments on Arne Slot ‘hype’
In our opinion, how Slot has begun his tenure at Anfield is all the more impressive because of the fact that he’s following Klopp.
To some, though, they clearly believe that the life of the Liverpool head coach has been made easier due to the quality of the team Jurgen left behind.
This is a question that is posed to Shearer by readers of The Athletic on Friday.
“Do you think the praise for Arne Slot is over the top? He's taken over a team of leaders and winners that pretty much runs itself,” is the slightly incredulous query the 54-year-old is to answer.
READ MORE: Roy Keane explains the lesson Ruben Amorim can learn from Arne Slot at Man United
“On the contrary, I think Slot has done brilliantly,” Shearer rebukes. “Yes, Liverpool are a well-oiled machine with some very good players, but he's added to it, he's made them tougher defensively and they've only lost one game. That doesn't feel like a case of too much hype.
“Sometimes, new managers give their teams a bounce, but there have been enough occasions when influential long-term figures have gone and things have fallen apart. Intensity or identity can dip.
“That's certainly something Liverpool would have been desperate to avoid when Jurgen Klopp left.”
Alan Shearer highlights Trent Alexander-Arnold ‘tweak’
As well as defending Slot from this ludicrous assertion, Shearer praised the way the Dutchman has ‘tweaked’ the position of Trent Alexander-Arnold.
“I was lucky enough to be at Anfield doing co-commentary for the Champions League game against Bayer Leverkusen, and the German team were blown away in the second half,” said the Premier League’s all-time top scorer.
“Slot has implemented a few interesting tweaks. You're not seeing Trent Alexander-Arnold going into midfield as much as he used to and he's defending better as a consequence.”
This is certainly true. And although Trent’s attacking numbers have been hit – he has just two assists and no goals in 14 games so far this season – he looks like a different player defensively.
While Alexander-Arnold is an example of the ‘winners’ being referred to by The Athletic reader, this improvement in a much maligned part of his game is another clear example of the influence Slot is having.
