Arne Slot has already proven why Liverpool chose him to be Jurgen Klopp’s successor after he won the Premier League title last season.
This time around, however, after the Anfield outfit lost six out of seven games, questions were being asked about whether the Dutchman actually had what it took.
Many were left baffled by some of his decision-making, such as starting Dominik Szoboszlai at right-back and even using Florian Wirtz in attacking midfield when it clearly wasn’t working.
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However, the thing that left fans the most confused was the fact that he chose to more or less throw away their chances of winning the Carabao Cup by starting a lot of Liverpool’s academy players.
Arne Slot, Manager of Liverpool, reacts during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Aston Villa at Anfield.
Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images
And, even though he got plenty of stick for it at the time, he’s actually come out of the other side of it looking like a bit of a genius.
Arne Slot’s decision to heavily rotate against Crystal Palace has worked out for Liverpool
As mentioned, when Slot named his starting XI for Liverpool’s Carabao Cup tie against the Eagles, most fans were left concerned by the lack of ambition the Dutchman was showing.
The game came at a time when most fans felt like all Liverpool needed was a win, but instead, the former Feyenoord boss chose to stick to his guns and allow the youngsters to have a runout.
Looking back at it now, it was clear why the Anfield outfit chose to sacrifice the Carabao Cup when they had two massive games against Aston Villa and Real Madrid coming up the week after.
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Although missing out on another piece of silverware is annoying, it does mean that the Merseyside outfit can put their full focus into the Premier League and Champions League.
These competitions are far more important than the domestic cups, and Slot’s choice to rotate certainly paid off, making him look like a genius.
Liverpool must continue building on their recent wins to shoot themselves back up the Premier League table
One thing that Liverpool need to do this season is continue winning games.
The Reds have been in poor form for the best part of a month now, and if they don’t build on their two wins, they could find themselves struggling to challenge for the Premier League title.
At the moment, Arsenal are running away with the league, and neither Manchester City nor Liverpool will want them to get any further ahead.
Whichever team out of Man City and Liverpool manages to win on Sunday will have the best chance of challenging the Gunners.
If they draw, Arsenal would be in dreamland, and even though the Reds still need to play Mikel Arteta’s men once more, all their faith can’t be put into that one game.
Mikel Arteta pictured during Arsenal's Premier League match against Fulham at Craven Cottage
Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Here’s hoping that the best version of Liverpool comes out against the Cityzens and Slot’s men show how good they actually are.
That is, especially if they want to continue proving how much of a genius their manager is.