Arne Slot Needs To Rebuild Liverpool’s Mentality Monster

During a press conference in Deventer, Netherlands, Feyenoord coach Arne Slot was asked about a potential transfer to Liverpool FC. The question was raised after a Dutch Eredivisie match between Go Ahead Eagles and Feyenoord Rotterdam, which took place on April 25, 2024, at De Adelaarshorst. Mr. Slot provided his response to the query.

Liverpool's downfall towards the end of the 2023/24 season led to the team losing their chance to win three end-of-season trophies, resulting in them leaving empty-handed.

Besides the feeling of defeat and letdown regarding sports, there is an added emotional component. Liverpool will bid farewell to their celebrated and iconic manager, Jürgen Klopp, who announced in January that he would depart the team after this season.

Before Liverpool's season ends, they still have three Premier League matches to play. However, after their 2-2 draw against West Ham on Saturday, their morale seemed to be quite low.

Many are feeling let down that they weren't able to assist Klopp, whom they consider to be their fatherly figure or the leading force behind Liverpool, as expressed by West Ham's manager David Moyes during a post-match interview. The triumph of the League Cup in February appears to have occurred a considerable time ago.

Klopp, while serving as manager of Liverpool, had a famous quote that referred to his team as "mentality monsters". He used the same expression in his native language, German, when describing his passionate Borussia Dortmund team, and it has come to epitomize the accomplishments of his players as Liverpool escalated to become one of the world's top teams under his leadership.

Liverpool used to possess a specific quality which it appears to have misplaced over the past few weeks. This quality will need to be rediscovered by the club's new manager, Arne Slot, if they wish to achieve the same level of success experienced during the Klopp era.

Slot's task is to reconstruct the mindset beast.

The German coach of Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp, has a conversation with Mohamed Salah, the Egyptian forward, during half-time in the football game between Liverpool and Atalanta in the UEFA Europa League quarter-final first leg match at Anfield in Liverpool, northwest England on April 11th, 2024. The photo was taken by Darren Staples and AFP, via Getty Images.

During the draw with West Ham, there were certain moments when it was evident that Klopp's well-known mindset was not being visibly implemented.

At one point during the match, Alphonse Areola, the goalkeeper for West Ham, was in possession of the ball after there were claims of a foul against him in the preceding play. In lieu of awarding a free kick that would not benefit West Ham, the referee, Anthony Taylor, gestured for play to continue while Areola repositioned himself favorably with the ball in his grasp.

Areola released the ball and gazed at the ground, keeping it in play. Cody Gakpo, a Liverpool striker, could have taken advantage of Areola's mistake and scored but instead, he directed his attention towards the referee, puzzled about the situation.

A strong and determined team, known as the "mentality monsters", would not hesitate to take action. They would score a goal and deal with any issues afterwards. The referee, Taylor, paused the game and asked for medical attention for Areola, despite the player not showing any signs of injury before or after the incident.

Liverpool's ongoing struggles with their mindset were evident once again when Mohamed Salah was preparing to join the game from the sidelines. Salah had been going through a rough patch lately and was left on the bench, while Harvey Elliott had earned himself a spot on the team.

Klopp uttered some words to Salah before he was about to step on, which triggered an irate response from the Egyptian. This was a stark contrast to the usual displays of affection and support shared between Klopp and his team members.

Overall, the atmosphere was quite somber. The camera shots of the athletes on the sidelines showed numerous unhappy expressions.

I'm not specifically targeting Gakpo, Salah, or Klopp, but it's clear that Liverpool's performance has declined towards the end of this season.

The picture shows Mohamed Salah of Liverpool celebrating after scoring his team's second goal against Manchester United during their Premier League match held at Old Trafford in Manchester, England on the 7th of April 2024. He can be seen with his teammate Harvey Elliott while he scored the goal from the penalty spot. The image was captured by photographer Shaun Botterill and published on Getty Images.

Klopp previously stated that being a "mentality monster" is not innate, rather, it is something that can be developed.

Even though things aren't looking good for Liverpool right now, the possibility of players like Gakpo and others turning into "mentality monsters" - as suggested by Klopp - could be viewed as a hopeful prospect. There is room for improvement.

Slot has been hired for the challenging job of leading the recovery. He was selected for his expertise in not only strategically organizing the team but also motivating them. Liverpool will undoubtedly have difficulty replacing Klopp's psychological grasp on the game—a skill crucial to their success.

At present, Liverpool's mindset seems to be at its lowest point. This happened because they were very close to achieving significant accomplishments in Klopp's last season, but unfortunately, they were unable to reach them. As a result, the team feels distant from where they wanted to be. Now, their new replacement coach takes over during this challenging time.

Klopp leaving may bring down team spirit, however, it also implies the opportunity to begin anew with innovative concepts and revitalized enthusiasm.

It's not a piece of cake to reconstruct the monster, but the fact that there is an opportunity to accomplish it might be seen as a good thing.