Arne Slot believes that the struggling Manchester United are “much, much better” than their alarming positioning in the Premier League indicates as he readies his Liverpool squad for a match against their bitter rivals on Sunday.
Liverpool currently leads the Premier League table by six points and is favoured to secure a 20th English top-flight title, which would tie them with the record-holding United.
In contrast, United finds themselves in 14th place after experiencing five defeats in their last six league matches under the guidance of new manager Ruben Amorim.
However, Slot, who is also in his debut season in England, is determined not to underestimate his opponents at Anfield, particularly when questioned about possibly resting players at Friday’s pre-match news conference.
“No, I certainly won’t plan to rest any players as this is a significant match, and I have mentioned it before the first fixture (a 3-0 victory at Old Trafford) and I’ll reiterate that they possess far better players, in my opinion, than what the current league standing reflects,” he stated.
“I believe it might take some time for Ruben Amorim to extract this potential from the players, but they will eventually rise up and are truly much, much better than the league standings suggest right now.”
The Dutch manager expressed empathy toward his counterpart at Old Trafford, who switched from Portuguese champions Sporting Lisbon to United in November.
“I think every manager understands the struggles of their peers, as we all recognize the immense pressure that comes with this role,” Slot remarked.
When asked if he could firmly assure that Liverpool wouldn’t allow Trent Alexander-Arnold to depart in the January transfer window, given the defender’s strong links with a transfer to Real Madrid, he confirmed that Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah, and captain Virgil van Dijk are all in the final year of their contracts and can begin discussions with foreign clubs.
Slot stressed that Alexander-Arnold was “fully committed” to Liverpool and would participate in Sunday’s match.
“Hopefully, he delivers the same level of performance as he has in the last six months, as I believe everyone witnessed the exceptional form he showed in the first half of the season, and how dedicated he is to achieving success here,” Slot added.
