Arne Slot is refusing to get carried away by Liverpool’s away form as he thinks the hardest games are yet to come.
Liverpool are unbeaten on the road this season in all competitions and sit seven points ahead of the chasing pack in the Premier League, although Arsenal could trim that to six with a win over Ipswich tonight.
The Reds have avoided defeat at Manchester United, Arsenal, Newcastle and Tottenham so far but Slot believes that can partly be attributed to a kind fixture list.
Arne Slot press conference: West Ham, pressure, away form and more 💬 #WHULIV
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Speaking ahead of Sunday’s trip to West Ham, he said: “I think our away form has been good but maybe it has a bit to do with the teams you face in the first half of the season.
“So, I think mainly we have faced the teams in the top half of the table at home and the other ones we faced away, so that might have something to do with it. We are strong away from home and at home as well.
“I don’t see any reason why we are stronger there than here [at Anfield], [it’s] something we can best judge at the end of the season when we have played every team home and away, to see what fits us best. But I think we are a difficult team to beat away from home as in our home games.”
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Always pressure at Liverpool – Slot
Liverpool have blazed a trail this season but Slot insists that does not increase the pressure on his players now they are the team to beat.
“No, you’re sitting in front of the Liverpool manager; so, there is always pressure at this club, if you are one, two, three, four or five in the table,” he added.
“If you work at a big club like Liverpool there is always the pressure. I think last season halfway through the season, were they also number one? I think they were last season. So, it’s not so strange for a club like us to be on top of the league. But we know how many good teams there are in this league and they’re able to win almost every game as well.
“There’s no extra pressure – there’s always pressure if you work at a club like Liverpool.”
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Slot hails captain Van Dijk
Liverpool will be without the suspended Dominik Szoboszlai at the London Stadium but Virgil van Dijk is expected to lead the side.
The Netherlands international is out of contract at the end of the season – along with Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold – and Slot is a huge admirer of his countryman.
He said: “He has been a tremendous player, such a great player for Liverpool for so many years. Unfortunately for him, he was out with an injury for almost all of a season; that didn’t help this football club at all, so that probably tells you how big of an impact he has had here at this club.
“I can only tell you what my experiences are with him and he has been not only for what you see – because you see him during the game and he is outstanding during the game – but he has such a big impact in training sessions as well.
“He is the vocal leader of this team, every time we start an exercise he is on top of his teammates and he leads by example. So, for me, he has been outstanding until now and we can only hope he can continue showing this during the games and in the training sessions as long as he’s with us.”
