Arne Slott admitted he did not expect such a bright start to his Liverpool career after seeing his side move nine points clear at the top of the Premier League with a 2-0 home win over Manchester City.
Cody Gakpo's strike as part of a dominant first-half display put the Reds on course for a sixth straight win which was sealed when Mohamed Salah scored a late penalty.
“I don't think anyone, myself included, would have predicted this (start),” Slott told Sky Sports after watching Liverpool win for the 14th time in a 15-match unbeaten run.
“I knew that (predecessor) Jurgen (Klopp) left the team in a good place. But still, against all the teams we've played… we're not the only ones (competing for the title). I saw Arsenal yesterday (a 5-2 win at West Ham) and City will be back.”
Mo Salah scores from the penalty spot for Liverpool! ⚡🔴 pic.twitter.com/RmF3AQm4bD
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 1, 2024
Liverpool v Man City: The Reds had energy
City are seeking a fifth successive title and have finished top in each of the last seven seasons, but Klopp's side have eclipsed them in 2019/20.
Slott, who took over in the summer after Klopp's nine-year reign ended, led Liverpool to an unsurprising triumph against opponents who suffered a fourth consecutive league defeat.
“The amount of chances we missed made it narrow at the end,” said Slott, who saw Salah join the wasteful culprits when he lashed a one-on-one shot over the bar.
“But maybe that's nice for games like this. It should be like this. It would have been nicer if I scored the second goal earlier.
“We also have quality on the field” 💪
Liverpool coach Arne Slott reacts to his teams crucial win over Manchester City ✅ pic.twitter.com/Vl3bADFImA
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 1, 2024
“Ideally, I would like to see the second half as good as the first half. But the quality of the other team… if you want to win against City, you have to be perfect in every part of the game.
“We came close to perfection; we weren't perfect, but we came close to perfect. That's the only way to beat City. We always push high but they are so good at building so you have to work very hard.
“Our players had energy. Apart from our players, the audience was also fantastic today.”
Matches for Liverpool
Liverpool face two away games next week, visiting Newcastle on Wednesday (7.30pm GMT) and Everton on Saturday (12.30pm).
“We're a consistent team and it's hard to beat us,” Slott said. “But we have to put in the effort. We have injuries. We had to take Trent (Alexander-Arnold) off.
“It would be a risk (to keep him). These are the challenges we are facing right now, but every team has to face these challenges over the course of a season. “Next week is another big week.”
Hindi 
English 
Arabic 
German 
Greek 
Spanish 
French 
Italian 
Chinese 
Turkish 
Swedish 
Russian 
Portuguese 