Arne Slot knew that Bournemouth would be a side that would fight it in the upper half of the table when they refused to surrender to Anfield.
The cherries have been one of the real surprise packages of the season, but those in Liverpool will have known that this campaign would come. That's because their sports director, Richard Hughes, was the architect of what Andoni Iraola is building on the south coast.
Hughes left the Vitality Stadium in the summer to enter into the chance of Liverpool, but it was his work there, which meant he got the performance in Anfield.
Reds Boss Slot can curse his current colleague if some of his earlier signing sessions in Bournemouth hoped in the title of the Merseysiders on Saturday.
The Cherries have so far only lost five league games this season to be a point of the Champions League places after 23 games.
Their only defeat due to more than one goal came to Anfield in September when the Reds defeated them 3-0, but it did not turn into a trouncing despite the hosts shot in three goals in the first half.
“The second half we played against them showed me that they are a serious team,” said Slot. “If you are 3-0 and can compete and work so hard in the second half, you will tell a lot about the team's mentality.
“Combined with the quality they have – Richard left that club in a very, very good place, not only with the quality of the players they have, but because he has hired a very good manager – that's why it's no surprise to me That they are able to compete with every team in the competition. “
Liverpool is unbeaten in 18 league matches on the way to the location where Arsenal and Manchester City have already lost this season.
While only Chelsea, Newcastle and Brighton have left this campaign there so far. Slot has talked to Hughes about how you prepare, but admits that the insight of the sports director has not really brought many secrets because the Reds look to keep their six -point lead at the top of the table.
“They have defeated so many strong teams,” said Slot. “There is a simple reason for that: they have a lot of quality – made by Richard of course.
“He hired a fantastic manager. Why is he fantastic? Well, he has a great game plan and his players work incredibly hard. And in a different way to Arsenal, they pose a threat to set pieces.
“They always come up with worked that are very useful for them. In every department they are a very, very strong team. They deserve to be where they are and maybe even a little higher than that. “
Comments