Arne Slot insists he “didn’t need” another midweek break from life at the AXA Training Centre, but explained why he feels Liverpool’s days off are “necessary.”
Liverpool returned to the AXA Training Centre on Wednesday to begin preparations for their clash with Nottingham Forest on Sunday, having been given time off at the start of the week.
Hugo Ekitike travelled to Paris while Mohamed Salah, Dominik Szoboszlai and Milos Kerkez were all pictured together in London, and for Slot himself there was a trip back to the Netherlands.
It is the second such pause in three weeks in February, with Slot typically allowing his staff and players a two or three-day break during a game-a-week schedule.
And asked about the importance of that time off, the head coach described it as “necessary” for his squad and “always nice” for himself to rejoin his family in Zwolle.
“I think if there’s a difference between players and managers it’s that if players have days off they also prepare their body and all these kinds of things,” he told reporters in his pre-Forest press conference.
“They’re probably not thinking every second of the day about Forest.
“If managers have a day off or two days off they do think about their next meeting and the next opponent they will play.
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Sunday, May 25, 2025: Liverpool's head coach Arne Slot and wife Mirjam and son Joep and daughter Isa after the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Crystal Palace FC at Anfield. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
“But it’s always nice in my situation to go home, to see the family, because they’re not always around with me.
“So yeah it was nice, and useful, because I think the players we have, nine out of 10 go to the national teams.
“I think for seven or eight months, they’ve hardly had any days off.
“When you can give them a few days off – which is not common in our schedule – it’s necessary for them, to get them in the best possible way for Sunday but also in the weeks after.”
Arne Slot: I don’t need the time off this season
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Saturday, February 14, 2026: Liverpool's head coach Arne Slot on the bench before the FA Cup 4th Round match between Liverpool FC and Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Asked whether he felt he needed the break, Slot replied: “No, I didn’t need it. I think maybe if you ask me the same question in a month it’s different.
“It was nice to have a few days off, but I didn’t really need it. Last season I felt I needed it more maybe in this period, or it was mid-March.
“No, I’m enjoying the work I do over here, I enjoy working with the players, I enjoy working with the staff.
“I couldn’t say I really needed it, but it’s nice to have.”
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