Speaking at his pre-match press conference on Thursday, ahead of a pivotal showdown with Manchester City, Slot offered an extensive verdict on his first major signing for the upcoming season. The head coach was eager to credit the club's board and sporting director, Richard Hughes, for navigating such a competitive market to land the young Frenchman.
"Very pleased, of course, because first of all, he is a very big talent - and maybe even more than 'only' a talent, but we speak about talent because of his age, of course," Slot told reporters. "Second of all, because we weren't the only ones interested in him. So another big compliment for the people that are working every single day, so hard, to sign players that we were able to sign such a big talent. It is another example of the model we are using at this club. Young, very talented players, sometimes at the start of their careers, sometimes already a few years in, but always players that are young and can improve us and help us for the short but definitely also for the long term. We've signed a lot of them recently and I've said many times that the mid-to-long-term future, but even the short-term future, of this club is in a very, very good place".
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