Arne Slot made a winning start to his Premier League career as Liverpool manager thanks to two quick goals. Diogo Jota And Mohamed Salah in a 2-0 win over newly-promoted Ipswich on Saturday. Slott has the tough task of replacing Jurgen Klopp at Anfield, but the Dutchman will be pleased with a superb second-half display.
“The first half was probably about what we expected because they were all over us and were very aggressive. The second half was a joy to watch,” Slot said.
Ipswich were riding a wave after two successive promotions and a return to the Premier League for the first time in 22 years. Celebrity fan and minority owner Ed Sheeran was present at Portman Road, although the singer-songwriter had to leave at half-time to attend a gig in Serbia.
Sheeran got the best of the Tractor Boys, who were completely unimpressed by their illustrious opponents. Omari Hutchinson had a shot blocked inside two minutes before Jacob Greaves had the best chance of the first half with a header. Alison Baker.
Slott is the only new face at Anfield as Liverpool are the only team in the Premier League yet to make a signing in the transfer window. The need for some fresh faces was evident in a sluggish and slow first 45 minutes on the ball.
However, Slot’s half-time team talk worked as the Reds were a different team after the break and could have won by a much bigger margin. “The first thing was that if you lose so many games we don’t need to talk about tactics,” Slot said.
“I think we needed to win long balls through the air. That helped us and gave us control. I don’t think Ipswich could keep the momentum going in the second half.”
Greaves needed a crucial clearance to prevent Salah’s effort from curling into the far corner. But Liverpool also had a narrow escape as a potential penalty for Virgil van Dijk’s push on Liam Delap was ruled out for a marginal offside in the build-up.
Luis Diaz Missed a great chance to open the scoring when he scooped from close range after superb play Trent Alexander-Arnold And Dominic Szoboszlai Alexander-Arnold’s cross was set up for the Colombian and Jota headed it into the net.
Liverpool’s pressure finally showed on the hour mark when another defence-splitting pass from Alexander-Arnold opened Ipswich up and Salah unselfishly squared to Jota to make up for his earlier miss. Five minutes later it was 2-0 as Salah leapt in after a one-two with Szoboszlai to score for Liverpool for the ninth time on the opening weekend of the season.
ipswich goalkeeper Christian Walton made a number of saves in the closing stages, notably from Salah and Conor Bradley, to avoid an embarrassing opening day defeat. Kieran McKenna’s side were unbeaten at home in the league for nearly 12 months.
But Ipswich have had an early lesson in the difference in quality between the Championship and the Premier League. Things won’t be easy for Ipswich next weekend when they play against defending champions Manchester City.
Liverpool, on the other hand, have a chance to build some early momentum under Slot’s leadership. After a trip to Manchester United next month, they face Brentford, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Wolves and Crystal Palace in their next six Premier League games before the October international break.
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