Having suffered a difficult defeat mid-week against Paris Saint-Germain that knocked Liverpool out of the Champions League at the Round of 16, manager Arne Slot says it’s the perfect time for his side to have to prepare for the League Cup final.
With five days between their European tie and a date at Wembley against Newcastle United, there’s no time for the Reds to stew over Tuesday night’s Champions League blow with the players being given a positive to focus in on and work towards instead.
“Especially after losing against Paris Saint-Germain we are really looking forward to playing this final against a very good with Newcastle,” Slot noted. “It’s maybe the perfect game but I think our nine games in the league are going to be finals as well.
“If we had to play for the league on Sunday I think we would have been up for it, but it’s always nice to play for a trophy, so now this is the last game of the tournament and it’s against Newcastle so it’s going to be an interesting occasion to look forward to.”
A shock defeat in the FA Cup against Plymouth and Tuesday’s tough loss to PSG—a side the Reds were massively unfortunate to meet at that stage—mean two trophies are now off the table, but two are still on the line starting with Sunday’s Wembley final.
Win there and, with a 13 point Premier League lead, those final nine league matches could turn into a celebration of what would be a phenomenal achievement in Slot’s first year in charge when likely nobody had the Reds as serious title contenders.
“We’ve tried to win every competition we were in,” Slot added. “Unfortunately we were already out of the FA Cup and unfortunately after Tuesday we are out of the Champions League as well so there are now only two trophies for us to win.
“I think in general the Premier League is hardest because it’s 38 games and you have to do so many things well. Cups—even the Champions League—are maybe easier but still very difficult. So now we are in the final and a chance to win our first trophy.”