New Liverpool boss Arne Slot unveils new formation in Real Betis friendly win but warns fans there is a catch
ARNE SLOT unveiled a new formation for Liverpool’s friendly win over Real Betis.
However, Slot has warned it is not something they should get used to.
Liverpool triumphed over the LaLiga outfit 1-0 thanks to a goal from Dominik Szoboszlai.
The Reds dominated the ball with 63 per cent possession while managing nine shots as 23 players were used throughout the fixture.
Despite the excess of players used, Slot was without a number of his first-team stars for the game.
This saw the Dutch tactician opt for a swashbuckling 4-2-4 formation, a big divorce from the 4-3-3 favoured under the Jurgen Klopp era.
This formation featured no orthodox forwards, with Szoboszlai and Harvey Elliott playing as double false nines up front.
Wingers Mohamed Salah and Fabio Carvalho held their width for the most part, but were overlapped by the likes of Kostas Tsimikas and Conor Bradley when they did inevitably come inside.
While not perfect, with Betis managing seven shots of their own, the early indications were this formation could be promising for the Anfield outfit over the coming season.
However, ex-Feyenoord boss Slot has already dismissed the idea of it becoming a regular feature.
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He told LFC TV: “We played with a double 10 which we’re not going to do during the season but we don’t have a striker at the moment.
“Both Harvey and Dom are No.10s so they can create in this position. Once we have a centre-forward, we will set up a bit differently.”
The likes of Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo, perhaps viewed as more traditional forward options by Slot, remain on holiday following semi-final exploits for Uruguay at Copa America and the Netherlands and Euro 2024 respectively.
Nunez scored twice in the USA for the tournament, while Gakpo finished as joint-top scorer in Germany with three.
Liverpool’s next game will be against Arsenal in Philadelphia in the early hours of Thursday morning.
They are yet to sign a senior player this summer after missing out on Leny Yoro to Manchester United, but Slot is relaxed about their market activity.
Slot snubbed Spurs, hates defending and has a PASS named after him
By Dan King
LIVERPOOL’S new manager Arne Slot was a good enough player to have a type of pass named after him.
But it is as a manager that the Feyenoord head coach is really making his mark.
Like another bald Dutchman, Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag, Slot earned his stripes bossing smaller sides before being given a chance at one of the Netherlands’ big three.
But the question Liverpool are pondering is whether Slot would make a better fist of running one of the biggest clubs in the world than Ten Hag so far has at Old Trafford.
Slot, 45, was certainly easier on the eye as a player than centre back Ten Hag.
“The Arne Slot Ball” was something he perfected as a silky No 10 – a back-to-goal, first-time, 180-degree spin and flick behind the defensive line for a winger to run on to deep in the opposition half.
Click here to read all about the incoming Liverpool boss.
Speaking before the Betis win, he said: “The first aim is to work with these players.
“The disadvantage is that many of them aren’t here yet.
“The positive is that it gives us time to take a good look at the youngsters.
“There is an important line at the club that young players come through.
“Our standards are really high when it comes to bringing in new players.
“Of course, Richard (Hughes) and I are trying to improve the squad where possible.”
Liverpool go Dutch
WHO'S who in the Liverpool dugout next season.
Manager Arne Slot, 45
Slot has led Feyenoord for three seasons, wining the Eredivisie title in 2023 and the KNVB Cup in 2024.
A former footballer in Holland, he is known to be a perfectionist and favours attacking football like Jurgen Klopp.
Assistant manager Sipke Hulshoff, 49
Hulshoff currently serves as Ronald Koeman’s assistant manager with the Holland national team and also works alongside Slot at Feyenoord.
He has had two spells as manager at little-known Dutch side Cambuur.
Head of performance Ruben Peeters, 31
A former fitness coach at Genk, Peeters has been working with Slot at Feyenoord since 2021.
The Belgian has a Master’s Degree in Sports Sciences.
Chief analyst Etienne Reijnen, 37
Former centre back who retired from football in 2020 to move into coaching.
In October 2023, Reijnen joined Feyenoord as assistant coach, to focus on analysing and providing technical advise to Arne Slot.
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