Slot Issues a Challenge to Players — and to Fans
Liverpool play Southampton at 3PM GMT on Saturday
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot spoke to the press ahead of Saturday’s afternoon kick-off against Southampton, a league match sneaking in before the Reds face PSG for the second leg on Tuesday and Newcastle in the League Cup final the following Sunday.
Speaking of the fixtures, the Reds’ boss described the match against Southampton as just “the first of three finals.”
This language is, of course, not Slot’s invention; we’ve often said or been told to treat every match as a cup final even at moments much earlier than this point in league play. This is a particularly challenging mental effort, however, since Southampton come into this match on nine points at the bottom of the table, and the other two “cup finals” are the second leg of a knockout fixture and a literal cup final.
Should Liverpool win on Saturday, however, they make the gap 16 points before Arsenal kick off at Old Trafford on Sunday. The players will be battling complacency here, but if they manage it well they can make it all so much harder on their rivals.
Importantly, Slot’s cup final cliché was not aimed simply at the players, as he very specifically asked the Anfield crowd to treat it like a cup final as well.
Those in Anfield aren’t the Parisian Ultras, however, and won’t look to make noise uniformly across 90 minutes — nor would we want them too, in my opinion: it’s far too easy for opponents to drown out noise that doesn’t react to or relate to the action in front of them; that kind of wall of noise is great for television but can become mere set dressing for those on the pitch.
Reactive atmosphere is the most effective, but an afternoon match against Southampton is not one likely to get the best out of the Anfield crowd without some effort: it’s not one many will be getting in early for, and the context doesn’t lend itself to an atmosphere of intimidation or defiance — plus, we can assume that Slot will want his team to exhibit calm control, which is a brilliant watch but doesn’t necessarily lead to reactive sonic blood pressure rises in the stands.
And yet Slot has issued a challenge, and there are certainly things the crowd can do to be up for this one. Anfield needs context, but might perhaps work a bit harder to find some. Rewarding the efforts that get big rousing cheers in the final minutes of a hard-fought match from the start, perhaps; managing nerves and anxiety to urge on rather than stoke fear — generally planning to have a nice day out.
The crowd is unlikely to manufacture the atmosphere of a great European night, nor should that be in its skillset; the spontaneity of that atmosphere is part of its charm, and a major reason why it has its impact. You cannot artificially produce a mood.
You can plan for a nice day out, though, and perhaps that’s a way home. It’s not a cup final, in the end, but it is a chance to make Arsenal’s mental cup final on Sunday — and all the ones after it — feel like even more of an uphill battle. Maybe that’s the context we should all be singing and chapping and shouting for.
Source: liverpooloffside.sbnation.com
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