Arne Slot accepts that experts can have an opinion about whether the standard of the top flight in England fell during a season in which his team saw the title race change into a procession
Arne Slot says that winning the Premier League is still the ultimate performance. The Liverpool boss accepts that experts can have an opinion about whether the standard of the top flight in England fell during a season, so that his team changed the title race into a procession.
But the Dutchman is determined that after a week, which the second placed Arsenal saw the European Champions Real Madrid from the Champions League and Aston Villa Push Paris-Saint Germain, the Premier League remains the best in the world.
Liverpool can be crowned champion when they travel to Leicester – and Slot said: “The beautiful part of an expert's task is that you can write about something in two ways – positive or negative.
“If everyone had the same opinion, it would be pretty boring. But Arsenal does not only have to win the Champions League for all of us to make sure that the Premier League is by far the best competition and the most difficult competition in the world.
“I don't even think someone can even debate that. Is it stronger than the season for or two or three seasons earlier? That is up to everyone to debate.
“But during the week we saw Aston Villa so good against a team that, together with (male) city, have unlimited amounts of money to spend.
“Villa is the team that is seventh in the Premier League and was a pity not to go to extra time. They deserved it. That could be an example to say:” Yes, the Premier League is really good at the moment. “
This season Liverpool has only lost two of their 32 league matches to turn the title race into a procession. After Pep Guardiola has seen it against each other with Jurgen Klopp and Mikel Arteta in the past seasons, the prospect of any late dramas has long been taken while they opened a 12-point gap.
But lock said: “Others could think of reasons why the Premier League is not as good as last season or the season before. The number of points could be an argument. City, a few years ago, got 100 points and then Liverpool had 99. Was the best Premier League ever there or was it too easy for Liverpool and Man City to win their games?”
“You can look at things how you want. But I don't care how other people look at it. The only thing I care about is the competition table. I like to look at it at the moment – and I hope I can still look at it in one, two, three, four, five or six games.
“I can give you examples of almost every game we played. Wolves at home, even Southampton at home, Plymouth Away, who are not even at Premier League level.
“West Ham, I don't know where they are in the competition at the moment, but they have players who can play for us. You don't see that in the Italian competition, you don't see this in the Spanish competition, you don't see this in the Eredivisie. You only see this in the Premier League and that is why it is such a popular competition.
“And that's why people pay so much money through broadcasters – and that's why we can bring in so many good players.”