Liverpool news: Arne Slot podcast – Tactical changes from Klopp

A special episode of BBC Radio 5 Live’s Football Daily podcast analyses Arne Slot’s success in his first season in charge of new Premier League champions Liverpool.

Mark Carey, tactics writer and data analyst for The Athletic, said there have been “a lot of similarities and a lot of differences” between Slot’s tactics and those of his predecessor at Anfield, Jurgen Klopp.

“They’ve been a little bit more patient in possession,” said Carey. “You think about the way they build through the thirds – last season, Trent Alexander-Arnold would tuck inside and be key to the way they built through the thirds, but that’s no longer the case.

“Virgil van Dijk has been open in saying he’s now got more responsibility to start attacks. It’s the Dutch connection from Van Dijk into Ryan Gravenberch, who has been crucial in the way Liverpool build from the defensive third into the midfield third and then progress forward.

“They’re also slightly less intense out of possession. Slot has said they want to be intense when the opportunity is there to press high, but only when the opportunity arises. They know when to step off a little bit and drop more into a mid-block.

“Why I think there are so many similarities and differences – it’s not that he’s necessarily changed anything compared to Klopp, [he’s] just adding an extra layer and an extra string to the bow that was building on the foundation that Klopp left.”

Listen to the full podcast on BBC Sounds