Liverpool boss Arne Slot believes that the winter break for Paris Saint-Germain played a key factor in their Champions League disappointment. The Dutchman believes that the winter break that PSG enjoyed allowed them to have a higher level of intensity.
Les Parisiens enjoyed superiority in the first-leg tie at home; they lost 0-1 after a surprise late goal from Liverpool. However, the Reds lost the second-leg 0-1 at Anfield despite enjoying superiority in play against the physically strong French club.
During the extra time, Liverpool’s players showed clear signs of fatigue and failed to cover spaces or control the ball possession. PSG enjoyed dominance once again for the last 30 minutes of the tie before their inevitable penalty victory.
Paris Saint-Germain out-played Liverpool during the extra-time due to the fatigue factor before eventually eliminating the Reds in the Champions League.
Paris Saint-Germain out-played Liverpool during the extra-time due to the fatigue factor before eventually eliminating the Reds in the Champions League.
Speaking to Liverpoolfc.com (via YouTube), Slot revealed that he believes the winter break played a crucial role for Paris SG to eliminate Liverpool in the Champions League. He said:
“Yeah, but these players have given everything they have got in every single game they have played over an amount of seven or eight months. Today you always try to reflect on our loss [on Tuesday] and one of the things I am really curious to see is that Paris Saint-Germain did have a winter break and their intensity levels over two games were very high. We coped with those intensity levels on Tuesday, maybe we even went above them, whereas they were on top of us last week. But they had this break in the winter so are they at their peak now or can they even go on?”
Slot praised PSG and their upcoming opponents, Newcastle United, for their level of intensity this season. He added:
“We have been on a relentless streak of games for four months now, so [it will be] interesting to see how other teams are able to do, like Paris Saint-Germain. Can they keep doing this? What I know is that we have been doing this for four months in a row now without any rest in between and yes, Sunday is definitely a game where we will go all in again. But this is also a quality of Newcastle – they are a team that can play on a high intensity, like Paris Saint-Germain, like us. That’s why Paris Saint-Germain went to the next round and that’s why Newcastle went to the final, because that is modern football: you need intensity to win games.”
Liverpool have not spent an immense amount since the 2024 summer midfield revamp under former manager Jurgen Klopp. The Legendary German also worked under a restricted budget with many windows where Liverpool barely spent any money.
Nevertheless, the Reds operated with the mentality of taking every game and competition seriously and challenging at every front. However, Liverpool faces rivals who nitpick competitions according to their importance and also operate at a significantly higher budget.
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It is a good thing that Slot is reevaluating all the factors that made them face setbacks this season to avoid them going forward. The Reds will face the Magpies next in the Carabao Cup final, casting their recent disappointment aside for a potential back-to-back Carabao Cup triumph.