Liverpool boss Slot believes in learning everyday; confirms Alisson, Chiesa and Jota’s absence till international break

Liverpool is just a point behind Premier League leader Manchester City, has made a flying start in the Champions League and is through to the League Cup quarterfinals.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot applauds fans after the match. | Photo Credit: Reuters

Arne Slot says he is learning more about his Liverpool squad every day as he plots a four-pronged trophy push in his first season in charge.

Liverpool, which faces Brighton on Saturday, is just a point behind Premier League leader Manchester City and has made a flying start in the Champions League and is through to the League Cup quarterfinals.

Overall, it has won 12 of its 14 games in all competitions, with a solitary defeat.

Slot, who replaced Jurgen Klopp in the Liverpool hot seat, was asked at his pre-match press conference on Friday what he had learned about his squad’s abilities to compete for the four trophies on offer.

“You learn every day, especially if you are not as long with the team as I am,” he said. “Then you learn every day from new situations, and as I said before, the Chelsea game (a 2-1 win) was something I learned from them, that they could sit deep and defend the lead.

“The way they came back against Arsenal (a 2-2 draw) was really strong, and the amount of games we have to play and that they are still able to be available and play good football, that is also something you see.”

Slot said his fringe players had shown the impact they could have during Wednesday’s 3-2 win against Brighton in the fourth round of the League Cup. “We will need them during the whole season,” he said. “So it’s good to see that they are already on a level they need to play for us.”

Slot said the League Cup, in which Liverpool are defending champion, was important to him even though he made multiple changes.

“Because we’ve played so many games, it was a good moment for the other ones to play, because at that moment I felt they were better able to win that game for us than the ones that have already played so many games,” he said.

“Now we’ve won it and you probably tell me, ‘Yeah, you put a lot of emphasis on this cup’. If we would have lost it you would have said, ‘Yeah, if you miss out on so many starters it’s a logical result’.

“We want to win every game, we want to compete for every trophy, especially if it’s one we have to defend, and that is with the Carabao (League) Cup. And the FA Cup is coming in January, so let’s think about it then. But people already told me that it’s a very important cup to win.”

Slot said goalkeeper Alisson Becker, new signing Federico Chiesa and forward Diogo Jota would all be out until after the November international break, with no exact dates for their return.