Virgil van Dijk has revealed that Arne Slot was the most angry he has ever seen him at half-time in Liverpool’s eventual 3-1 win at home to Southampton.
The Reds were disappointing at times on Saturday afternoon, especially during a dire first half, but they eventually got the job done in the Premier League, thanks to Darwin Nunez’s equaliser and two Mohamed Salah penalties.
Slot was watching on from the stands and it is clear that he was fuming at the break, with Van Dijk confirming as much after the game [via This Is Anfield].
“Yes, but if you look at the first half, he had every right to be angry,” Van Dijk said.
“And I think from his point of view as well, it was even more frustrating to see.
“But we did what we all wanted in the second half and what he wanted as well and now we move on. He wasn’t happy and he had every right to [not be].
“No-one was really happy with the first half performance, but we are all human beings and we had no intention to play the first half like we did. Unfortunately we did, but we turned it around. That’s part of football.”
Big improvements needed for Liverpool against PSG
While Liverpool eventually got the job done against Southampton, there is no question that massive improvements are required at home to Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday night.
The Reds were poor at the Parc des Princes earlier this week, coming away with an extremely fortunate 1-0 win, but if they don’t go up a level at Anfield, there is every chance that the Ligue 1 giants will prevail over the two legs.
It promises to be a fascinating clash between two of Europe’s best sides this season, and the hope is that Van Dijk guides his side to victory, as he and his players avoid another dressing down from Slot.
With Arsenal drawing at Manchester United in the league on Sunday, Liverpool have edged one step closer to the league title, but there is no reason why they can’t also go all the way in the Champions League.