Gary Lineker says that one thing Slot did in Liverpool win on Saturday made him ‘slightly nervous’

Gary Lineker has given his reaction to Arne Slot publicly calling out one of his Liverpool players after the win over Ipswich on Saturday.

Although the Reds prevailed 2-0 at Portman Road, our new head coach candidly admitted after the match that he withdrew Jarell Quansah at half-time for losing ‘too many duels’, a criticism that he levelled at the team as a whole.

Speaking on The Rest is Football, the Match of the Day host was taken aback by the Dutchman’s directness, noting the difference in approach from that of his predecessor in the Anfield dugout.

Lineker said: “That speaking out publicly about a player’s performance is not something that you would’ve ever heard, I don’t think, from Jurgen Klopp, so there’s already a slight difference there. I’m always slightly nervous when managers or coaches are publicly critical of their players.”

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We agree with Lineker that we wouldn’t be in favour of managers routinely throwing their players under the bus and publicly humiliating then in the manner that Jose Mourinho has often done in the past.

It was bold by Slot to namecheck Quansah in stating his dissatisfaction with Liverpool’s struggles to deal with Ipswich aerially in the first half on Saturday, but the decision to withdraw him for Ibrahima Konate at half-time was vindicated by the eventual result and the dominance we enjoyed after the interval.

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We’d like to think that the head coach wouldn’t have called out the 21-year-old in public without first making his point to him in the sanctity of the dressing room. Having just come in the door to replace a legend in Klopp, the last thing the 45-year-old would want to do is alienate his players at an early juncture.

What the Dutchman’s post-match comments have made clear is that, if some of his team fall below the standards that he expects, he’ll speak his mind not just in private, but also when the cameras are rolling and the world is watching.

It can be a risky approach, but if it gets the desired effect in terms of successful results on the pitch, Slot will feel that the end justifies the means.

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