‘I missed fighting spirit’ – Slot responds to Szoboszlai criticism | OneFootball

It’s not often we see players openly question mentality straight after a defeat, but Dominik Szoboszlai did exactly that following Liverpool’s heavy loss to Manchester City, and now Arne Slot has responded.

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Speaking via Liverpoolfc.com in his post-match press conference, the Dutchman addressed the midfielder’s comments directly and offered his own interpretation of where things went wrong.

Slot responds to Szoboszlai ‘fighting spirit’ claim

Our boss admitted he didn’t fully agree with the Hungarian’s assessment across the entire game, but did acknowledge a key period where standards dropped.

He said: “I should ask him what he means – what he means and what period of time. If he felt that was the whole game, I did not feel this until the moment they scored the 1-0.”

That’s an important distinction, because for large spells of the opening half, we were actually competitive and causing problems, something also reflected in Dominik Szoboszlai’s own post-match interview where he admitted we had chances but failed to take them.

The head coach continued by highlighting how quickly things unravelled once we conceded, particularly in transition moments.

He explained: “But then we had a throw-in, twice we conceded when we had a throw-in. And they go so fast. In those moments you have to defend sharper.”

Key 10-minute spell summed up Liverpool collapse

While Slot didn’t believe the issue lasted the entire match, he did pinpoint a crucial spell where he agreed with the criticism.

The former Feyenoord coach added: “I miss the fighting spirit definitely in the first 10 minutes after half-time… in that 10, 15 minutes of time, I missed fighting spirit but just the willingness to win your duel.”

That period ultimately killed the game, turning a difficult situation into a collapse, and it aligns with what Szoboszlai said when he admitted: “The fighting spirit wasn’t there enough, the mentality wasn’t there enough.”

There’s a clear theme emerging across the squad now, with Virgil van Dijk also admitting responsibility and calling the result a “very difficult” one to take, which suggests the dressing room is aware of the issues.

The key now is how we respond, because with Paris Saint-Germain next, Slot’s message is clear that mentality, duels and intensity have to improve immediately if we’re to keep our season alive.