Arne Slot explains what Liverpool must fix in order to achieve ‘special things’ this season | OneFootball

Arne Slot has explained Liverpool can achieve ‘very special things this season’ but must firstly ‘improve in both boxes’.

The Reds suffered a 3-2 defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday evening – a result which ended a 13-game unbeaten run across all competitions.

The result leaves the Premier League champions in sixth spot, 14 points adrift of league leaders Arsenal, and Slot has acknowledged his side must improve at both ends of the pitch if they’re to achieve success this term.

“If we can improve in both boxes, we can do very special things this season,” Slot said (as quoted by BBC Sport).

“But if we can only improve in one box, then it will probably be an acceptable season but not more than that.

“And if we can’t improve in both boxes, there’s going to be a lot of noise.”

Liverpool can secure a top eight finish in the league phase of the Champions League if they’re to defeat Azerbaijani side Qarabag at Anfield tomorrow night.

A top eight finish would of course mean Liverpool are straight through to the knockout stages of Europe’s premier competition and will avoid the two-legged play-off round.

The Reds can forget about defending their Premier League crown this season but their performances in Europe so far this term will give the Merseysiders plenty of confidence in regards to winning a seventh European Cup.

Winning at least one trophy should be the bare minimum for a club like Liverpool – and Slot was quizzed on what he would deem an ‘acceptable’ season for his side.

“When you are Liverpool, the aim is to win the league. We’ve only done this twice in the last 30 years. The aim is to be competitive in every single competition we are in,” the former Feyenoord boss added.

“That’s always the aim, but the reality is that in the last three years we’ve won one League Cup and one Premier League title.

“What is acceptable? I have my opinion but I’m not going to share that.

“The outside world has an opinion. As we all know, a lot has been said about the £450m [that Liverpool spent in the summer], but people tend to forget the £300m we bought in.”

At what end of the pitch are Liverpool struggling most?

Virgil van Dijk has performed well below par for Liverpool this season (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images)

In 23 Premier League games so far this season, Liverpool have conceded 32 goals. Only one other team in the top half of the table have conceded more (Manchester United with 34).

In regards to the Champions League, the only team in the top eight to concede more goals than the Reds’ eight is PSG (10).

Slot’s men have kept 10 clean sheets across 34 games across all competitions and most Kopites would agree that the Anfield-based outfit look like conceding every time the opposition team attacks.

In regards to going forward, Liverpool have scored 58 goals across all competitions this term compared to 77 after the same number of games last season.

The Reds have scored three or more goals on seven occasions this time around but have also conceded three or more goals on seven separate occasions.

Slot needs his leaders to step-up

In the coming weeks Slot needs the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah – two of his most important players – to step-up and show what they’re made of.

Both players signed fresh details last year keeping them at the club until 2027 but have struggled to repay the faith shown in them by the club so far this season.

Andy Robertson, who has been strongly linked with a move away from Liverpool recently, now appears to be staying put on Merseyside.

He’s another vital part of the Reds squad and someone who can be so influential both on and off the pitch as he and his teammates aim for Champions League and FA Cup success.

There’s still plenty of football to play this season but improvements at both ends of the pitch are certainly needed.