Arne Slot reaction: Liverpool boss hails improvement, set-piece dominance after big win vs West Ham
· Yahoo Sports
Liverpool manager Arne Slot will have liked plenty of what he saw going forward from his side in their 5-2 win against West Ham on Saturday, but there was still plenty to dislike at the other end of the pitch.
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The Reds have now won four of their last five in the Premier League and three in a row as they've given their hopes of qualifying for the UEFA Champions League next season a huge boost.
Here's the latest Arne Slot reaction from Anfield.
Arne Slot reaction
On if there is a lot to take from that: "Yeah, but the main thing to take is that we scored three goals from set pieces and maybe you could even argue a fourth because the one from Cody was a bit later on when we had a set piece," Slot told Sky Sports. "So, that can make a big difference in a game. Because I don't think 3-0 at half time was a fair reflection to the run of play. So many times we have been on the opposite that, we've deserved so, so, so much more but didn't get it because of a set piece conceded and today I don't think we deserved to be 3-0 up at half time if you look at open play. But that we were up was maybe okay but three was nice."
On being asked about the slow starts for Liverpool before the game and how they scored quickly today: "That is true. In all the other games we played we had a lot of set pieces but we struggled for a long time to score from it. But we did have chances. But we always knew things would go back to normality again. That is what is happening now. Now we still generate the chances but now they go in. And all of a sudden things looked much nicer. From open play I don't think it was our best game of the season. Was a good game but not our best. Set pieces can make a massive difference."
On not being comfortable in the second half despite being 3-0 up: "When they score the 3-1 that has a lot to do with it that it doesn't feel completely comfortable. Players, fans, manager, have some experience this season in giving away a lead. That then usually doesn't help to be calm. But I don't think after they scored the 3-1 they had a lot of big chances. We were closer to scoring the 4-1 with Cody Gakpo but we missed that one from a long throw from Joe Gomez. In the end I think we were never really under a big threat. But you never know because we've experienced this season a lot of times that even if we are in control, we can still concede a goal. That didn't happen today, in the big moments, so being 4-1 up, conceding the 4-2 is not nice, but it's less a problem than at 1-0 or a two-goal difference."
On getting the job done and getting over the line in recent games: "I never like to concede a goal but if you do concede a goal, and in one goal I think we had almost 11 players around our 18-yard box, which is normal because it's from a set piece, and the other goal I think 10 of our players were in and around the 18-yard box. That is what you want and sometimes a ball can fall in their favor but if you do this constantly then usually you don't concede a lot of goals and I think that is a big improvement for the team and that we've made. We know that we have the quality that we can always score a goal, either from open play and at the moment even from set pieces."
On it feeling like Liverpool have momentum and that can be crucial at this stage of the season: "I think we've had more than a few times momentum but if you have a run of games like we had, so many losses in a row, then every time you lose a game again you fall back a lot, if I explain myself well enough in English," Slot told the BBC. "But now for quite a long time it is very hard to beat us. I think it is 21 games and two losses, and both in extra time, so we are improving, that is obvious. In open play but definitely also on set pieces and as a result of that we are getting more results as well."