Q: What have you made of Arne Slot’s comments about open play goals versus set pieces? Do big clubs with the financial advantage have a duty to play the right way?
At the end of the day, it’s a results business. But I have to say it’s easier said than done because when I was working for Sir Alex Ferguson, we were obviously on a high.
We were winning most of the games we played and challenging for big trophies all the time but Sir Alex Ferguson always wanted to play an attacking, attractive style of football. High energy, high intensity. He felt we had an obligation to entertain the fans, and that’s great when you know you should win nine of the next 10 games. That’s an attitude thing about what comes with it.
Subconsciously, every player that received the ball was already scanning to find a solution. The midfielders or forwards, they knew that they needed to move position because a ball was going to be played forward into them, and that gives a team that vertical thrust to get up the field. It didn’t mean we never played the ball square. When there’s no option, you don’t play the ball forward to just give it away.
But for United right now, it’s just about winning the game, and yes in patches they will play some good football because that’s what good footballers do, and the more you win, the easier it is to play good football, but there’s no right or wrong way to play football. Everyone has to find a way to get results. Set pieces are a legitimate way to play.
Everybody piping up about long balls, set pieces and throw ins. That’s the game. You take advantage of what you can to score goals. Throw ins are a weapon and everybody can see it.
Tony Pulis did it with Rory Delap at Stoke, and rightly so. It’s for players and managers to decide when they want to use it or not. You can like it or dislike it but managers should just focus on their own team and their own style, what they want to achieve and basically, and stop worrying about what other teams do.
Q: Do Arsenal need to find more goals from open play under Mikel Arteta just to make themselves more complete rather than living up to the ideals of the Arsene Wenger era?
Possibly. Every manager wants it. If you ask Mikel Arteta he will say exactly the same thing. He wants to score more goals from open play and I think he’s got the squad and the players to do that but they have established such a goal threat from the corners and wide free kicks and that’s why they are top of the table.
They have the players who can score from open play but open play so often leads to set pieces for them so they’ve thought, well hold on a minute. We get all these set pieces and we don’t take advantage of them, and that is what they’ve done. They’ve looked at it. They brought in a specialist. They’ve worked at it and it’s working. That’s great.
You can almost say for Arsenal that open play that leads to a corner or a free kick is half a goal. It’s another way of looking at it. I don’t see it as a negative thing. Any goal scored should be celebrated by the coach, the players and the fans whether it’s from a free kick or some beautiful thing from open play.
Ideally, of course, all the top teams will score all types of goals to be sustainable in staying at the top because other teams will learn to defend better and make it harder or more difficult to score from set pieces. If that dries up for Arsenal, they could come unstuck, and they don’t want that.
Q: What have you made of the criticism of Arne Slot for how Liverpool have regressed this season?
Arne Slot and Liverpool are now experiencing the transition period everyone thought they passed through easily last season with Jurgen Klopp going, Slot coming in with his new staff.
Last season they basically just carried on from where Klopp left off. He realized what Liverpool had and appreciated it and made it very clear he wasn’t going to do too much to it apart from bringing Ryan Gravenberch in which was a big move and it clicked. They found their flow. Their performances were consistent. It all went well for them, especially in the league.
Now there have been some changes and sometimes that affects the nucleus of the team. They have spent a lot of money but everybody looked at it and said Florian Wirtz will be a good signing. Jeremie Frimpong, he’s a versatile player who can play any position down the right-hand side, and he’s done well for the Dutch national team. Obviously we all know Alexander Isak. Hugo Ekitike has looked good. They’ve also signed Milos Kerkez and had leaders like Alisson out injured. That’s important.
They were winning games in the first games of the season but they were dragging themselves over the line in the last few minutes so the writing was on the wall and they’ve gone from leading the title race to being several points behind. That’s an enormous shift but Slot has not turned into a bad manager. His coaching staff aren’t suddenly bad coaches. They haven’t suddenly turned the messaging to the players from black to white. It’s the same with the players.
Wirtz has come from a different league in the Bundesliga, as did Ekitke, but I think Wirtz is finding it even a little bit harder to find his feet. The whole Isak transfer saga has not done anybody any favors because he’s not been fully fit. Mentally, he’s probably not arrived at where he needs to be. He’s desperate to score a goal and get going.
Everybody’s starting to question Mohamed Salah now but he hasn’t suddenly turned into a bad player. He has had these spells before where he suddenly hits a bit of a dry patch.
So everything has added up into these consecutive losses and another difficult match against Aston Villa.
Q: How do you turn a situation around like what Liverpool are facing at the moment?
The only way ahead is that less is more. Don’t talk. Keep everything in-house. Make sure the messages within the club are clear. You’ve got into this position together. You have to get out of it together. The rest is noise.
You cannot start letting yourself get influenced by the noise outside and the people questioning you, or the emotions of the fans. Fans are not stupid as well. There are key elements that need to be addressed because they do let in too many easy goals and then it shows when key players are injured.
They have to go back to themselves and say, when were we at our best and what were the reasons why? The key is making sure that you don’t start pointing fingers at each other. You look at yourself first and make sure that you stick together. You say let’s bring the best out of each other again. It starts with hard work, working together, doing your defensive jobs and making sure those players who thrive on being able to express themselves have the courage to play their best football.
That’s what those big players do and there’s no harm in asking the big players to step up. Virgil Van Dijk is still there. Dominik Szoboszlai is only getting better and better. They’ve still got Alexis Mac Allister. Salah is still there.
Q: What do you make of the comparisons that Slot’s critics who say that he is making Liverpool into his Feyenoord team and therefore worse?
Comparing Slot’s Liverpool with his Feyenoord team is like apples and pears. The leagues are completely different. Feyenoord are one of three teams in a league that has no competition compared to the Premier League whatsoever. With Feyenoord you can go and play 10 games against the bottom teams and you’re winning without even coming out of second gear.
I think they’ve lost a little bit of that real energy, that real intensity. It has started to look a little bit slow and labored at times. You can’t blame teams sometimes sitting in a deep block because. That’s what happens when teams go there and try to get a result. They’re not going to say here you go, we’ll leave three or four players up front and you just march right through the midfield. That doesn’t happen.
Q: Are Aston Villa the worst team for Liverpool to be facing to turn this run around given their form and style of play?
It’s going to be an interesting game because I really do like Aston Villa and they’ve been on a good run as well.
They started the season poorly so they must have had some of their own in-house conversations to say, guys, what’s going on here? But they have turned the corner and it shows what a good manager Unai Emery is.
Villa will fancy their chances, even at Anfield. They’ve got a lot of players that can play through the lines, they’ve got good pace up front, players who can challenge in midfield and a few different ways that they can score goals.
Then again, you look at Liverpool’s loss to United and I didn’t think Liverpool played badly that game. They were unlucky at times. Cody Gakpo hit the post time and time again. If one of those shots went in, the game could have been turned on its head.
It’s the same with Villa. If Villa get their noses in front, and Liverpool have to chase the game, it can open up and obviously Villa can pounce on that opportunity. But it’s the same the other way around. I do think it’s important for Liverpool to win this game but I think it’s going to be a draw. There will be goals.
They need a result to say we’ve stopped the rot to then build on that and hopefully get a few results on that one. If they don’t, obviously the noise will only get louder.
Q: Are Aston Villa another dark horse in the top four race?
Villa will keep creeping up on teams. They were there last year and I think they were very hard done by and unlucky to miss out on the Champions League but they’ve got a lot of power, a lot of pace, a good structure and a good goalkeeper.
Q: How can Slot find a solution to his midfield if Gravenberch isn’t fit?
I think Dominik Szoboszlai could play the Gravenberch role well. I think he’s one of the players that overall, while Liverpool have underperformed, he’s done really well.
They have enough quality in midfield too with Mac Allister and I know Wirtz is still finding his way but he’s still a good player. If you can find him in pockets of space, sometimes a player like that only needs one positive moment and they’re back to their best.
Gravenberch had such a great season. He gave Liverpool that control. He’s versatile. He can even go forward. He is a massive player for Liverpool.
