Slot: Jota’s tragedy is no excuse for Liverpool’s bad moment

Arne Slot: The impact of Diogo Jota’s loss at Liverpool is “impossible to measure”

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has stated that the impact of losing Diogo Jota on his team is “impossible to measure”, but insists that he would never use this tragedy as an excuse for the club’s recent poor performance. Liverpool defender Andy Robertson admitted this week that he was “devastated” by the passing of Jota, in the period before Scotland’s 4-2 victory over Denmark, which secured their qualification for next year’s World Cup. The emotional interview of the 31-year-old player has generated debate about the extent to which Liverpool’s disappointing performance should be attributed to the effects of grief.

We are always judged, sometimes fairly, sometimes not. But I saw the live interview and I know it’s a problem for us, which is completely normal.

Arne Slot

When asked if he feels his team has been judged fairly this season, Slot replied:

At this moment, I always think about how his wife and children must feel. Because it is much, much more difficult for them than for us. But that we will miss the player and the person is completely clear. Now we play against Nottingham Forest, last season we were losing 1-0 and it only took him (Jota) a minute to score the equalizing goal.

Arne Slot

Slot added:

It’s good for us to remember it at all times. It’s possible because of the person and the player he was. It’s impossible to measure what this does to the players and our results. The last thing I would do is use it as an excuse. I don’t know. What I do know is that we miss the player, that’s 100% sure, and we miss the person, but I can’t measure the impact that has on our results. That’s impossible for me to say, and we will never use it as an excuse.

Arne Slot

Liverpool have lost seven of their last 10 matches in all competitions, but hope to recover when they host Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday. However, the Premier League champions will not have Florian Wirtz and Conor Bradley, who suffered injuries during international duty. “Andy Robertson hasn’t trained yet, but he will be with us today,” Slot said. “Alisson (Becker) trained last week and this week, so he will be able to play tomorrow if things go well today. If he is ready to play, he will start. But yes, we have some problems after the international break, unfortunately. Conor Bradley cannot play and Florian Wirtz cannot play. That is far from ideal.”