'Everybody now sees what Slot is capable of'
Former Liverpool midfielder Bolo Zenden says Arne Slot turned around criticism with "beautiful football" and "charisma". He is delighted that everybody now sees what the boss can achieve. "I think no one expected him to actually do what he did with his staff and his players," Zenden told BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast."In the beginning people were thinking someone's coming in from the Mickey Mouse league and what's he going to do at Liverpool? Very soon he turned around the criticism with beautiful football, with charisma and I think everybody now sees what he's capable of doing. The most interesting thing is probably still to come."I'm sure he's not going to sit still. It's strange to talk about when you've just won the league but I'm sure that in the back of his mind he's already planning for next season."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Atletico Madrid appear to cool interest in Andy Robertson as they 'line up Serie A youngster' as alternative to Liverpool star
Atletico Madrid are reported to have a new left back atop their shopping list, a development which could cool their interest in Liverpool 's Andy Robertson. Earlier this month, Atletico started eyeing up Robertson once talks for AC Milan 's Theo Hernandez fell through. The Scot could fall down Liverpool's pecking order now Miloz Kerkez has been signed for Bournemouth. No formal approach was made by Atletico but they were informed of Robertson's interest in discussing a move. However, according to Spanish outlet Marca, Atletico have changed tack once again with Atalanta full back Matteo Ruggeri now in their sights. The left back, 22, has impressed for Italy at the under-21 Euros this summer. He is under contract at the Serie A outfit until 2028 but age works in his favour as Atletico look for a youthful infusion of talent. According to reports, there are only a handful of details left to be ironed out before Atalanta and Atletico form an agreement, with talks having progressed to an advanced stage. Robertson, 31, has one year left on his contract at Merseyside and is yet to agree a new deal despite talks. Asked recently about his future, Robertson said: 'I'm not getting any younger - I can't change my age - but I still believe I've got a lot to give. 'We've had good discussions, me and the club, but what the future holds, I'm not sure.'
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Harvey Elliott has shone at Under 21 Euros but can barely get a game for Liverpool, writes NATHAN SALT and LEWIS STEELE... as suitors circle, here's why he must look out for No 1
Harvey Elliott is searingly honest. That stems from dad Scott, his toughest critic, who hardened up the young Elliott by pulling him up on any mistakes and putting him on an intense hill-climbing strength programme. It also stems from Jurgen Klopp 's tough love and, most recently, the frankness of Arne Slot 's criticism. So nobody has needed to point out to Elliott just how low down the Liverpool pecking order he is right now. Nobody has needed to spell out how important a move away from Anfield is for him this summer. 'I am at an age where I want to cement my place in the team and be playing week in and week out — and it is not going to just come for me,' Elliott conceded this time last summer in Philadelphia on Liverpool's pre-season tour. 'It's just to make it more about myself and be a bit more selfish in certain ways, but I have that team spirit in me. I will never lose that. 'I want to play for the team and the badge, I love the club. But in certain situations, I need to think about myself more.' Fast forward to the media day at St George's Park ahead of the Under 21 Euros, following a season during which Elliott made just two league starts, against Chelsea and Brighton, both after Liverpool had already won the league — and he made another frank admission. 'I'm coming to an age now where I'm 22 and I don't really want to be wasting years of my career, because it's a short career,' he said. He is not short of suitors. Brighton and West Ham are keen, as are RB Leipzig in Germany. Liverpool would want an offer of at least £40million to consider selling him — and that price will only go up as Elliott continues to thrive for England in Slovakia. Mail Sport understands that while Slot was initially impressed with Elliott during pre-season, he was less pleased by his levels in training following a two-month absence with a foot injury. And after a summer spending spree which has seen more than £200m splashed out on Florian Wirtz, signed for £116m to play in Elliott's favoured No 10 position, along with Jeremie Frimpong, Milos Kerkez, Giorgi Mamardashvili and young keeper Armin Pecsi, there is little resistance to Elliott leaving. He is considered fourth in line for the No 10 role now behind Wirtz, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Curtis Jones; he is not considered physical enough to play in a deeper role; Mohamed Salah and Federico Chiesa are the right-wing options; Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo are the preferred left-wing options. While Elliott is living the dream at Anfield after his boyhood club paid £4.3m in compensation to prise him away from Fulham in 2019, he risks finding himself airbrushed out. Elliott is popular among Reds supporters after 147 games for the club, and an eventual exit, which many believe will be in the coming weeks, will sting. On the pitch after the final game, he buried his head in dad Scott's chest in floods of tears. The question now is whether an Elliott departure would draw parallels with that of Cole Palmer from Manchester City, a player who was ahead of Elliott in the pecking order two years ago when England's Under 21s won the Euros in Georgia. A few weeks later, Manchester lad Palmer was draped in Chelsea blue, and ever since his career has skyrocketed. 'I love the kid, he plays football the right way. I am excited for his future,' former Liverpool and Chelsea star Joe Cole said of Elliott after his match-winning brace to fire England's Under 21s into tomorrow's final against Germany. 'Any team outside the top six, he comfortably walks into, and then after two years at that level, he comes back to Liverpool's level and competes.' Liverpool saw off interest from Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund and Manchester City, among others, to land him. And had things turned out differently for Elliott, he may well have played alongside the player to whom Cole likened him in Bratislava. 'That second goal, if (Lionel) Messi did that the world would be stopping,' said Cole. 'He has this ability and the frustrating thing is he could do it on a consistent basis if he played regularly. 'His problem is he can do so many good things. He's a victim of his own skills.' As Elliott struggles to nail down a place in the Liverpool team, he knows he might have to move on. The Reds must just hope his exit does not come back to haunt them, like Palmer's still haunts City.
Times
3 hours ago
- Times
Elliott is star of U21s' run to final — so why does no one want to sign him?
More than any other quality, it is largely agreed that what marks out the best is the ability to settle key matches with critical contributions. At the European Under-21 Championship in Slovakia, Harvey Elliott, scorer of four goals, has been England's most important player in the knockout stage. He scored England's second in their 3-1 win against Spain in the quarter-finals, then produced two excellent finishes on Wednesday against the Netherlands to lead England into Saturday's final against Germany. The Liverpool midfielder could feasibly win the player-of-the-tournament award, yet will return to Merseyside still mulling his future. He made 28 appearances in all competitions this season, all but six of those as a substitute. He made three starts in the domestic cups, one in the Champions League, after Liverpool had secured their spot in the knockout phase, and two in the league, after Liverpool had won the competition. Over the past year, however, his statistical profile is impressive. He had the benefit of coming off the bench with licence to attack but, per 90 minutes, he averaged: 0.66 goals; 0.4 expected goals; 3.49 shots; 0.33 assists; 0.18 expected assists; 8.8 progressive carries. For a 22-year-old with considerable Premier League experience (94 matches), these numbers would usually command Liverpool's attention and have the selling club thinking they could generate a hefty transfer fee. Yet Arne Slot, the Liverpoold head coach, has not been able to find a regular position for Elliott, who said a fortnight ago that he may need to consider his future at the club. The key issue at Liverpool is competition. Elliott can play as a winger, a No10 or a No8, but at Liverpool there is no No10 and no player is displacing Mohamed Salah from the right wing — and that is before considering that Elliott interprets the position very differently from Salah. He is neither as quick nor as strong, and prefers moving infield and linking play like a No10. He is not the type of winger to engage in one-on-one duels with the opposition full back, which necessitates a more conventional, overlapping full back to complement him (as Tino Livramento has done for England Under-21). He is a bright player but, like a classic No10, needs the team to play to his strengths; in the system that Lee Carsley uses, he thrives, adding creativity and energy in the half-spaces and producing mazy dribbles and shots that are too hot to handle. But to feature in midfield — the only other spot available in Slot's Liverpool team — players need to be fast, physical and suited to counterattacking and counterpressing. It was telling that in Liverpool's win against Brentford in January, a game in which Elliott set up a goal for Darwin Núñez, the Englishman was brought on as Alexis Mac Allister was withdrawn. Mac Allister, at 5ft 9in, is two inches taller than Elliott — a rarity in an otherwise fast and physical side. Even Jürgen Klopp was reluctant to field a shorter XI in the Premier League. It is not that Elliott does not do the defensive work but rather that Liverpool, and most elite Premier League sides, prize the ability to reach high top speeds, compete physically and manage counterattacks. Liverpool struggled with the latter when Elliott featured regularly in midfield in the 2022-23 season, which led to the club buying an entirely new midfield and ending their pursuit of Jude Bellingham. The arrival of Florian Wirtz, for a potential fee of £116million, further complicates matters for Elliott, who is behind the Germany playmaker, Dominik Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Curtis Jones in midfield. His numbers are so good that only Premier League clubs are likely to be able to match Liverpool's valuation of the player, yet a slightly less physically demanding league, like La Liga or Serie A, may be where Elliott could reach his true potential and dominate matches. Elite, possession-dominant teams such as Inter Milan, where older players such as Hakan Calhanoglu and Henrikh Mkhitaryan have reinvented themselves, or Napoli, where Scott McTominay played a central role in their title triumph, may appeal to Elliott, and the pace of leagues like Serie A may help him shine. Equally, there are teams in the Premier League that do not press or play an intense game, such as Aston Villa, who have been able to accommodate creative talents like Youri Tielemans in their XI by constructing the team around them. Elliott has two years remaining on his contract. He signed from Fulham's academy aged 16 in 2019, for a compensation fee of £1.5million and a further £2.8million in add-ons. Fulham have a 20 per cent sell-on clause. A significant sale would return sizeable profits for Liverpool. But finding a taker that suits both player and club — with continental teams far less financially endowed than English clubs — is the difficulty. Yet as Chelsea's Cole Palmer — starved of minutes at Manchester City two years ago — showed, a move to the right club, with the right support and tactical licence after a successful Euros, can be the platform for launching a career.
