Despite extending their perfect Champions League record with a sixth consecutive victory, Liverpool manager Arne Slot was “far from pleased” with his side’s performance against Girona.
Liverpool eased to a 1-0 win in Spain on Tuesday evening thanks to Mohamed Salah’s second-half penalty. The Reds sit top of the new Champions League table with the only faultless sequence of results this season, but Slot was concerned by Liverpool’s display on and off the ball.
“If you ask me about all the six games,” Slot told TNT Sports post-match, “I am really pleased with all the results and the performances in the five games.
“I am far from pleased about the performance tonight. Especially two things. If you play against a team that has such a good idea about football, knows how to bring the ball out like teams we have played recently in Real Madrid and Manchester City, you need to be so intense.
“But if you are waiting to press and are so easily outplayed, this team can cause you problems. This is what they showed throughout Champions League except [against] PSV.”
Girona racked up 13 shots, firing five on target, but came up against an in-form Alisson. The Brazilian goalkeeper made his long-awaited return from injury after more than two months on the sidelines with a hamstring problem.
“I feel sorry for them because they deserve more than three points,” Slot said of Girona. “We have an incredible goalkeeper. When we lost the ball we were not aggressive enough. Hardly any control at all of the game. Maybe the second half was a bit better.”
Liverpool’s manager continued his appraisal of Alisson: “He definitely didn’t look like he’d been away. I said as a bit of a joke the players wanted to test his fitness today [by giving up chances].
“He showed today what I said so many times that he’s our first goalkeeper. That’s nothing to do with Caoimhin [Kelleher], who did well, but [Alisson] showed today he’s one of the best, in my opinion, the best goalkeeper in the world. Let’s hope he can keep these performances going and stay fit.
