After three games in charge of Liverpool, Arne Slot has had a near-perfect start. The Dutchman's side went into September's FIFA Days with nine points and no goals conceded, boosted by a win over rivals Manchester United.
Slot still uses the framework left by Jurgen Klopp but with tactical adjustments. The 45-year-old strategist is a cheerful, sociable person but also very strict when needed. Proof of this was when he took Jarell Quansah off the field after the first half of the win over Ipswich Town. The reason was that Slot realized the 21-year-old defender was at a disadvantage in the one-on-one battles.
And it was a good decision for Slot. Ibrahima Konate replaced Quansah and Slot stuck with the same line-up for wins over Brentford and Man United. The common thread in those games was the difficulty teams had in breaking down Liverpool's defence.
Slot became only the third manager in the Premier League era to win his first three games without conceding a goal. Jose Mourinho did it with Chelsea in 2004. Three years later, Sven Goran-Eriksson did it with Manchester City. All included a win over Man United.
Four of Liverpool 's five defenders have been established for some time. They are all experienced stars in Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson. Meanwhile, Quansah and Konate have been fighting to become the second centre-back alongside Van Dijk.
One issue that limited Liverpool’s title challenge last season was a defence that was sloppy and allowed too many shots. Ensuring Alisson doesn’t have to make as many saves is part of Slot’s new plan. Alexander-Arnold can still move into midfield, while Robertson can still push forward as he did under Klopp. But crucially, that doesn’t come at the expense of stability.
A stable defence is the basis for the forwards to attack with confidence. Without a high defensive midfielder, Liverpool will focus more on possession, with Ryan Gravenberch taking the 'number 6' role. At Old Trafford, the Dutchman showed an impressive reading of the game.
All three of Liverpool’s goals against United came from midfield pressure, forcing the hosts into mistakes. Brentford have caused problems on the counter-attack at Anfield in the past, but Slot’s side rarely panicked.
Up front, Slot also brings confidence to Diaz, Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah. Furthermore, The Kop's strikers are also more secure in case of losing the ball, with a solid defense led by Van Dijk behind them.
Tough tests lie ahead as Liverpool return to the Champions League, with a busy fixture list likely to see changes in personnel to keep players fresh over a long season.
Liverpool won their opening three games of the 2018-19 season without conceding a goal, amassing 97 points but still finishing second behind Man City. Last season, the Reds kept 10 clean sheets in 38 games on their way to third place. That was still fewer than champions The Citizens managed 13 and runners-up Arsenal managed 18.
This shows that Liverpool need to defend better if they want to win the Premier League. As Sir Alex Ferguson once said: "Attack wins you games, but defence wins you titles."
