The Merseyside derby is as alive and well as it could possibly be after an incredible ending to the inaugural clash at the brand new Hill Dickinson Stadium, where Liverpool beat Everton 2-1 thanks to Virgil van Dijk’s winning goal in the 100th minute on Sunday.
EVERTON 1-2 LIVERPOOL — Video highlights & recap
Below is the latest Arne Slot reaction, speaking after Mohamed Salah opened the scoring in his final derby against the Toffees and captain Van Dijk headed home Dominik Szoboszlai’s corner kick 10 minutes into second-half stoppage time.
Arne Slot reaction — What did Liverpool boss say after beating Everton in the 100th minute?
“What else would you expect if you play over here? It’s always going to be a real battle. My players did what I was hoping for, what I was expecting them to do — to give Everton a big fight. In the end, scoring is a joy to see, especially because our away fans were brilliant today as well. A good day for the red side of Liverpool.”
On his team selection: “There were multiple factors going in, but [experience in big games] was one of them. From the start, we were not impressed. They were better in the first 10 to 15 minutes, but we stood our ground and we got better and better into the game. The moment when they scored the 1-1, it was the moment I expected it the least, because for me we started the second half really well. Toward the end, we kept on pushing, kept on pushing. We scored a goal you would expect Everton score — a set piece — is nice.”
“The start of a game is both teams go all in and fight, then after 10, 15, 20 minutes the game eases down a little bit. Then you can take a bit more about tactics or how you want to position yourself on the pitch, but in the first 15 minutes is just running, facing the duels, winning them, pressing the ball on both sides, so it’s a bit of chaos. When things settled down, I think you could see we were able to find the players we wanted to play, especially in the second half.”
“We all know it’s a special occasion, the first derby in their new stadium. You know it’s one for the history. To beat them for the second time this year, we haven’t had a lot of positive things happening for us this season and we usually conceded in the last minute of games, but now we scored and I think you could see the reaction of our players and the reaction of the fans toward the players — that tells you everything, how important this game is. … Today is definitely a day for the fans to be happy about. … We are going to enjoy it — the players and my staff. There is no difference between the fans, the players and me.”
