Steven Gerrard has warned Arne Slot to stop moaning about Liverpool’s fatal flaw in interviews and challenged him to find a solution.
Slot said after Liverpool’s 3-0 win over Marseille that facing a low block is the Achilles’ heel which prevents his side from producing such performances more often.
It has been his recurrent gripe in a season where the Reds have struggled to break down weaker teams, and Slot dedicated more than a minute of his post-match analysis with TNT Sports to dissecting the issue.
Slot said: ‘I know so well why we are not consistent. That mainly has to do with when a game is more open, when players can play through the lines and tactics are involved and they show how good they are, that’s completely different than against a low block.
‘You need a completely different quality against a low block. Against a low block, it doesn’t have much to do with what you prepare before the game. You just have the ball a lot, get in the final third, and something should happen.
‘You cannot compare that with the game tonight when both teams want to play out from the back and press. Every game we’ve played this season when this was the situation, we’ve played very good games. Many of these games we’ve got results, [but] lost against Man City and Chelsea.
‘Why we are inconsistent – if you want to call 14 times unbeaten “inconsistent” – that has all to do with us struggling against a low block.’
But Gerrard took issue with Slot in his post-match punditry, claiming the Liverpool boss needs to stop airing his grievances and rather find a way to combat them.
‘He needs to stop mentioning low blocks,’ the Reds legend said on TNT Sports.
‘Low blocks have been happening at Liverpool since I played and many, many years before me. That’s just the way it is, teams are going to try and do everything they can to stop Liverpool.
‘The key is finding solutions. You’ve got the players. Then you’ll turn the low-block games into wins rather than draws. It’s not going to change.
‘They’ll face a low block at times against Bournemouth at the weekend. They’ve got to be ruthless and the big players have got to step forward and score the goals to win games.’
Slot also brought up the problem of low blocks in his interview with CBS Sports, saying: ‘Today we didn’t face a low block and we played a very good game. If you face a low block, it’s very hard to get pace into the game.’
Gerrard did also praise Slot for getting the best out his his players individually and as a collective against their French hosts, who laid on a hostile atmosphere at the Stade Velodrome.
Liverpool dispatched Marseille with relative ease thanks to strikes from Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo, either side of an own goal from goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli, for which Jeremie Frimpong took credit.
Szoboszlai gave Liverpool the lead just before half-time with an expertly taken low free-kick.
In the 72nd minute, Frimpong’s excellent run to the byline and cross led to Rulli turning the ball into their own net.
Gakpo then scored in the 93rd minute to seal the deal, with Liverpool now fourth in the Champions League table and almost certainly through to the last 16.
They have a two-point cushion over the chasing pack in ninth and below and next Wednesday they welcome Azerbaijani champions Qarabag to Anfield.
Qarabag are not to be underestimated – they have accrued 10 points from a challenging run of fixtures to put themselves in the play-off positions after seven games – but Liverpool will be heavy favourites for that one.
