Jamie Carragher perfectly explains clever Arne Slot tactic that led to Liverpool goal

New Liverpool manager Arne Slot has made some tactical adjustments since replacing Jurgen Klopp at the helm, and Jamie Carragher has described how one such decision reaped rewards against Crystal Palace.

Liverpool icon Jamie Carragher has described how new Reds manager Arne Slot’s tactical decision resulted in Diogo Jota’s goal against Crystal Palace.

Jota scored the game’s only goal as Liverpool defeated Palace 1-0 thanks to a wonderful ball from Kostas Tsimikas to Cody Gakpo on the left flank. Gakpo then sent a first-time cross to Jota, who shot past Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson. And Carragher said Tsimikas’ performance in the goal was an excellent example of why Slot like his full-backs to play far narrower than usual.

In a social media post, he explained: “Narrow fullback (Tsimikas) plays the pass for Gakpo, which is exactly why Slot wants his fullbacks narrow in the build-up.” Slot previously explained why he believes Liverpool should play with narrow full-backs in a conversation with Carragher on Sky Sports. “The idea of the full-backs not being that wide, it depends on the press from the other team,” Slot told me.

“But if the full-backs are all down the line and you play [to] the full-back, he’s extremely far away from some other players, and it takes a long time to get the ball there. So, if you play closer together, the ball will travel faster from one foot to the other, giving the opponent less time to defend.

“The aim of full-backs, or players playing close together, is to make quick passes that give the other team little time to defend. Of course, you may switch play faster and receive the ball all the way down the line. Carragher has previously complained on Liverpool’s usage of full-backs under Slot, emphasizing how narrow Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold were in Liverpool’s season-opening win against Ipswich.

“He obviously like to use the center of the pitch, not just his defenders, but also his midfielders. He has always prioritized stats,” Carragher commented on Sky Sports. “Is it about keeping the ball? The back four was quite narrow.”Why would they do this? Arne Slot like to play through the middle. Martin Zubimendi, a holding midfielder and technical player, is the player he wants to purchase but has yet to sign.

“When we think of a team being counter-attacked, we usually think of the full-backs being wide. Someone drops the ball, and before you know it, teams are crowding around your two centre-backs. “The two fullbacks were there.”