Arne Slot has made a fine start to his managerial career in the Premier League with Liverpool, however, the managerial mastermind’s tenure at Anfield so far hasn’t come without its challenges
Arne Slot admits that he felt out of his depth arriving in England, grappling with memorising a multitude of new names while coping with a completely different language. Slot took on the formidable task of filling Jurgen Klopp’s shoes and has made quite the impact at Liverpool.
He has propelled his squad to an enviable position at the top of the Premier League with 18 points out of a possible 21 – their commendable run marred only by an unexpected defeat at home to Nottingham Forest. Although Slot was stepping out of his comfort zone, taking charge of a team outside the Netherlands for the first time, with no experience of foreign leagues as a player, some initial hitches were anticipated.
Despite these, the 46-year-old has adapted impressively, but acknowledges that acclimating to constant English conversations and familiarising himself with numerous new faces was something of a challenge. Speaking to Sky Sports about his first day at the helm of Liverpool, Slot shared: “I got a bit of a taste of what I’m used to now I would almost say, a large part of my job is sitting in front of a camera, and that day was also like this.”
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He added: “I had a lot of interviews, but fortunately there was still enough time to work with the players as well. But, in this country, there’s a lot of time for the media.”
But even with the glare of the media spotlight, Slot indicates that it’s not the interviews that swamped him; it was the sheer number of new colleagues to get to know, all while juggling a foreign tongue, reports the Mirror. He confessed: “I don’t think the media, that is not overwhelming.
“But, if you start at a new club in a different country, you hardly know the faces, let alone their names. The only ones you know are the players. At a club like Liverpool, there are so many staff members that in the beginning, it’s all new.
“New faces, new names. It’s also all in a different language, so the whole day is talking in a different language, so that is overwhelming. But, like it is in life, if you work somewhere for one or two weeks, you get to know the place, where the toilets are, and where the kitchen is, and you get used to it day by day.
“I think I know most, almost all, the names of the staff now which is normal after three months, but it takes a while.”
Acknowledging the adjustment period, Slot says he’s still connecting with his squad on a personal level, yet he’s certain such relationships will solidify over time.
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He explained: “It’s day-by-day work. I still get to know every player better and better. It’s a lot about bringing your ideas to the players, a lot about getting to know them, where they feel, how they feel in certain positions, and how they feel playing with each other – and in the tactics we want to bring in.
“So, you do this in team meetings, individual meetings, and during those, you hear about their private lives more and more as well.
“It’s a process that continues, but I’m not the type of manager that once to get to know them within the first week and then having 150 meetings, no, its bit by bit, trying to implement a playing style and trying to get to know the players better.”
