Arne Slot is wearing shorts and a club-branded track top, a whistle strapped around his neck like a PE teacher, repeatedly barking the one word that sums up this season for Liverpool.
Patience.
The setting is Philadelphia, a searing hot day on leg two of the Reds’ summer tour of the United States in the city of Smokin’ Joe Frazier where Slot and Co plotted how to land the ultimate knockout blow on Manchester City’s monopoly on the Premier League.
Slot was patrolling the pitch, home of the Eagles NFL team, shouting: ‘Patience, boys, patience!’ This was the first sign of the new regime: gone was the so-called heavy metal, breakneck football of Jurgen Klopp… welcome the soft rock, controlled style of Slot.
More solid at the back, patient in possession and a holistic, well-oiled unit that functions with clinical efficiency: this was our first introduction to the Slot Machine.
Patience extended as an apt virtue for fans when just one summer signing arrived (the lesser-spotted £10million buy Federico Chiesa). Patience was also the word when Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk’s future was stalked by a cloud of uncertainty for months.
Arne Slot’s soft rock, controlled style has secured Liverpool the Premier League title
Very few predicted this, but now the champagne can be taken off ice and popped to toast to one of the greatest debut campaigns we have seen from a manager
Slot often used the word ‘patience’ during his early training sessions in Philadelphia
And patience again was key when Liverpool stormed clear of the chasing pack in the title race. To outsiders, it has been a foregone conclusion that the Reds would be champions for months – but Liverpool fans have had to remain calm, not wanting to jinx anything.
Very few predicted Liverpool to be the runaway leaders, or even for them to have a chance. In fact, of 30 BBC Sport experts, guess how many called Slot’s men as champions in an August article? A big, fat zero.
But now the champagne can be taken off ice and popped to toast to one of the greatest debut campaigns we have seen from a manager. This is how Liverpool did it…
One of the first things Slot decided to change was, well, not much. He recognised the foundations left behind by Klopp primed them for success – but some subtle differences were needed if they were to go the distance.
But in an early briefing with the team, Slot told the group that he wanted them to not just play like winners but act like it. Stiffen up that upper lip, get the swagger in the shoulders. Act like they belonged at the top.
It was absolutely no slight on Klopp but the Dutchman noted that the previous regime was underpinned by the fact they were underdogs – punching above their weight against the mega-riches of City. Achievements felt like an upset. Slot wanted to change that mentality.
He did the same at Feyenoord. The Rotterdam club, perennially in the shadows of Ajax and PSV Eindhoven, were in a state of disarray when he came in but completely transformed their fortunes and won the league and cup.
His overachievements compared to finances was a main reason why Liverpool wanted him. There were others, such as playing style, injury prevention techniques and his track record for improving players – but the primary attraction was how he outperformed expectations.
Slot recognised the foundations left behind by Jurgen Klopp primed them for success
But he noted that the previous regime was underpinned by the fact they were underdogs – punching above their weight against the mega-riches of City – and wanted to change it
Very few predicted Liverpool to be the runaway leaders, or even for them to have a chance
A year earlier, Slot had rejected Tottenham to stay in the Netherlands. He turned down Leeds before that. Chelsea owner Todd Boehly took him for a spin in a private jet before hiring Mauricio Pochettino. Clearly, it was not easy to tempt him away from Feyenoord – but Liverpool did so.
Sporting director Richard Hughes led those talks in clandestine trips to Slot’s homeland and told him how he was their No 1 target, despite all the noise about Bayer Leverkusen’s Xabi Alonso and Ruben Amorim, then at Sporting Lisbon, being the favourites for the job.
One of the worries of Hughes – and there were very few – was that the jump from the Dutch Eredivisie to the Premier League is humungous. That, coupled with the fact Klopp was the ultimate tough act to follow, meant expectations were dampened before the season.
Slot knew he had to gain respect quickly and noises from inside the dressing room before the season was that, although he wears a smile and is relaxed in public, the Dutchman is an incredibly driven man and never accepts standards slipping. Train as you play and all that.
The manager reads a lot of what is written about him but is a humble being. When a visiting friend told him there was no Slot merchandise in the club shop – but there was lots of Klopp memorabilia – he replied: ‘Why would there be? I have won nothing yet.’
In his first half-time team talk, Slot let it be known that he was no pushover. Jarell Quansah, who started the first game at Ipswich, had been bullied by Liam Delap in the first half. Off he came and on came Ibrahima Konate, who has played every game since bar six when he was injured.
He would substitute off Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold in those first few weeks, too. Heads would shake but this was all Slot sending a message: I am not as loud as Klopp, I won’t be beating my chest to the fans, but I am the boss here.
In terms of playing style, Slot wanted more control. Inspired by compatriot Johan Cruyff and latterly Pep Guardiola, who he studied as a teenager, his mantra is pass, pass, pass. Or to use a phrase he told the group in pre-season: ‘I want you to kill teams with passes’.
Chelsea owner Todd Boehly took Slot for a spin in a private jet before looking elsewhere
Ryan Gravenberch has been the biggest success for Slot and his ‘kill them with passes’ style
Whenever you spoke to players or agents in those first few weeks to sense the mood, the most common response was ‘detail’ or ‘like going back to school’. Slot has often stayed up all night
Rondos, essentially a posh word for the playground game piggy in the middle, became a daily ritual on the training pitch. Players are encouraged to put their foot on the ball – the technical term is ‘pausa’ – and wait for spaces to open up.
Build-up play must be vertical (forwards and backwards) and, if the ball is not on, they start again. Patience. Kill them with passes.
Ryan Gravenberch has been the biggest success for Slot. Hardly seen last season – in any of the bigger fixtures at least – the former Ajax schoolboy has been virtually ever-present in his new role of a No 6. Assistant Sipke Hulshoff is said to be instrumental in this.
Liverpool wanted a new midfielder and thought they had one in Martin Zubimendi of Real Sociedad. The Spanish Euros winner gave Liverpool his word that he would join but U-turned on this. That looked a setback at the time but Slot tinkered and the rest, as they say, is history.
The boss never threw his toys out of the pram and instead invested his frustrations towards moulding Gravenberch into a top-class holding player. Curtis Jones has also played multiple roles and bit-part player Wataru Endo is often cited as having the best attitude at the club.
Slot ripped up the timetable and the schedule was changed to ensure players have breakfast together, designed to create a better bond within the building. They installed a new coffee bar at HQ, run by two local lads – Salah is often there, holding court and cracking jokes.
Under Klopp, team meetings only really happened the day before matches – save for the one he told the group he was leaving, which many players thought was a prank – but now they are daily occurrences.
Led by Slot and his backroom staff, there are team-wide briefings but also individual sessions. Players are told what they can improve in training and matches and Slot watches back every session. He also went back and rewatched footage of Klopp’s training drills.
Slot did not play a recognised striker at the Etihad, noting how City packed the midfield
Players are told what they can improve in training and matches and Slot watches back sessions
Whenever you spoke to players or agents in those first few weeks to sense the mood, the most common response was ‘detail’ or ‘like going back to school’.
Sources tell of how Slot has been known to stay up all night studying opponents to find weaknesses. He will cut footage of his own team in bad moments, such as poor misses or a defender falling over, to not dampen confidence.
On a trip to the Etihad Stadium, Slot did not play a recognised striker and instead started four central midfielders as he noted how Manchester City pack the midfield. The four midfielders occupied City’s defenders and helped create space in behind for the wide forwards to exploit.
‘He always finds the positive,’ one source said. ‘He’s really into analysing opponents for hours and hours. The players always say, “Everything the coach predicted, we saw in the game”. Arne is a workaholic but happy to delegate – he has a coach for this, a coach for that.’
The performance team led by Ruben Peeters give Slot a detailed dossier every morning on the fitness of the squad – ‘Player X needs to have a lighter training load this week’, ‘Player Y is ready to return to team training but only for half of the session’, etc.
Liverpool are also using AI to help prevent injuries. STATSports’ military-grade Apex 2.0 software, also used by the All Blacks rugby union team, can alert coaches if players are about to pull up. It has 100 per cent accurate, live data using more than 300 metrics.
One of them is ‘step balance’ – is the right foot stomping harder than the left? According to the clever clogs at STATSports, this can indicate an injury is about to happen, even if the player feels no discomfort, so it will ping up on the laptop and precautions can be taken.
Obviously no technology can legislate for Diogo Jota being kicked in the ribs or Alisson getting a knee to the head. But Liverpool’s injury record is exemplary and certainly an important factor in this triumph. Van Dijk, Gravenberch and Salah have barely missed a beat.
Last-gasp winning goals, none more important than Darwin Nunez at Brentford, have been key
In hindsight, maybe we should have predicted this all along after Slot’s success at Feyenoord
Minutes have been managed with the aforementioned trio, plus other regular starters, given scheduled weekends off to miss FA Cup, Carabao Cup and dead-rubber Champions League games. Alexis Mac Allister was allowed to go on holiday to recharge when he was suspended.
Because of this, Klopp’s old Mentality Monsters have been tuned to Physicality Monsters. Liverpool run more and last-gasp winning goals, none more important than Darwin Nunez’s at Brentford, have been thanks to their fitness and relentless mental belief.
Even Van Dijk and Salah, the two best players in the Premier League this season, have improved. Slot sees his compatriot as the ultimate leader and said as recently as this week: ‘I have never worked with a player like Virgil in terms of leadership.’
Van Dijk is the coach on the pitch for Slot and he has been credited with helping the likes of Gravenberch improve. His defensive partner Konate, too, has come on leaps and bounds. The Dutchman is the arm-round-the-shoulder sort but is always demanding more from the squad.
The skipper has a dedication to keeping his body in the best shape. Van Dijk and Salah are often in the sauna at midnight, doing cryotherapy or aqua cycling in their home gyms. It is not just these two but they are the standard-bearers.
It is also not all work and no play and Liverpool have more days off under Slot, with Salah often taking day trips. He enjoyed one Egyptian exhibition at a central London museum. Alisson pops down the Brazilian butchers and, when weather permits, fires up the barbecue.
The team spirit is also heard from the dressing room after big wins with DJ Van Dijk in charge of the Spotify playlist. Fleetwood Mac’s Dreams has aptly been heard, as have tunes from Eminem and the Notorious B.I.G.
In hindsight, maybe we should have predicted this all along and not expected any transition period. A year ago this weekend, Mail Sport was in Rotterdam to speak to Feyenoord fans about what to expect and those comments feel worth re-hashing now.
Liverpool have needed to be patience but Slot has now given them everything they wanted
‘You’re here to take our Slot… he has worked wonders with Feyenoord,’ said one fan, aptly named Paul van Dijk. ‘He has taken a dead team, nothing special, to the Conference League final, the League and Cup.
‘He teaches players how to become a lot better, I don’t know any other who can do that. He is a trainer who is human. We are sad to see him leave but also proud and happy for him. He’s the manager who gave us everything we wanted. He will do the same at Liverpool.’
He has indeed given Liverpool everything they wanted. Given the last title was wrapped in the height of the Covid pandemic with no punters allowed at Anfield, fans will this week party like it’s 1990, with this their first league title witnessed in the flesh for 35 years.
And there is that word again: patience. They have needed it. But it has been worth the wait.
