Liverpool boss Arnie Slot reacts to 1-0 defeat to Spurs and should there have been a Red card? in Carabao Cup Semi Final 1st leg
08/01/2025
Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium. London, UK
08/01/2025
Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium. London, UK
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00:00Yeah, it was a good goal, let that be clear.
00:11Ball in behind, cut back cross, Bergvall scoring, stayed really calm, finished it off.
00:18But I don't think you're interested in that.
00:21I think you're interested in the moment before.
00:25Yeah, when I just walked in I said, I was thinking, I think I saw Ainge sitting here on Sunday.
00:30And I thought something happened and I think the Spurs weren't happy with a few decisions that were made on Sunday.
00:37And many people always say that this will eventually match up in the end of the season.
00:43I'm not one of them that believes that because sometimes you can be unlucky in the season or you can be lucky in the season.
00:49Yeah, on Sunday a decision went against them, maybe today a decision went in favour of them.
00:55Which is, of course, very unlucky for us because I've never felt that we were going to lose this game.
01:02Especially not after the first 15 to 20 minutes because I did feel Spurs started the game better than us.
01:08But after that, in my opinion, we had most of the game in control, played most of the game on their half, had much more ball possession.
01:16And then, yeah, a moment like this, if you go down to ten for a few seconds against a team that can play so good football like Tottenham can, it's far from ideal.
01:35Yeah, I don't think there's any debate about that.
01:39They say, yeah, he didn't stop the counter-attack.
01:43I think every manager would prefer if there was a tackle being made 40 yards away from our goalkeeper.
01:51I don't think you really stop a counter-attack then.
01:54Every manager would prefer to get a second yellow card for the other team than to finish that counter-attack with a player less to play that counter-attack with.
02:03And then if that is not a discussion, then the next discussion is, was it reckless enough to just give advantage?
02:10Advantage is the right word.
02:11And then just come back and say, yeah, I thought the tackle was still too reckless.
02:15So we still have to give a yellow.
02:17But, yeah, he had to, in the far decision, he had to tell everyone what his decision was.
02:25And unfortunately, he didn't have to do this in this decision.
02:27So things happened.
02:30Very unlucky for us.
02:31Very unlucky for us.
02:32The good thing for us is that if you ever have to lose a game, it's better if you lose one where there's still a second leg to be played.
02:39And far from ideal starting position for us because they have a really good team.
02:47Probably some players come back for the second leg.
02:49So far from ideal to lose here.
02:52But if I ever have to lose, I prefer to lose.
02:54If there's still a leg to be played, then it would have been only this game.
03:02Jürgen, I know you've got a hell of a lot of games at the moment,
03:04but it was 17 days ago that we've beaten 6-3 here.
03:07I mean, it's sometimes difficult in football to kind of relate to what happened.
03:12Would you kind of, I don't know, concede that maybe you're not quite at your best tonight?
03:17Is that fair?
03:18Sorry, you're last?
03:20Would you concede that maybe you're not quite at your best tonight?
03:23We're not quite at our best tonight?
03:25Your team.
03:26Yeah, if you compare it with 6-3, then that's clear.
03:29But I don't think we will reach that level in every single game we play.
03:35So you can always expect a reaction from Spurs, which you saw today.
03:38You can always expect a reaction from the fans because it's a semi-final.
03:42We all know how important it is to us,
03:46but also how important it is for the Spurs fans to go to the final.
03:50So we knew when we came here that it would never be the same game
03:55as we played here one week ago or two weeks ago.
03:57But still, I saw a lot of things the same.
04:00I think even in that game, the ball possession was equal.
04:04But now I think we're at 60-40.
04:08So many good things to take.
04:10For me, more than the United game.
04:14But the result was not as good as against United.
04:19A little bit of history in English football with that first BA.
04:24Any thoughts on it? What did you make of it?
04:28I think you can judge something on one game,
04:33but if it's offside, then I don't think anyone has to explain something.
04:37When he started explaining something, you saw a red and a blue line.
04:40So I think it would be more interesting for everyone
04:45if he would have explained why he didn't give a second yellow card
04:48than explaining why he cancelled the goal.
04:53Because that's what everybody could see on the screen.
04:56But I know that that's not the rule.
04:58It's the rule to have these decisions where the VAR is involved.
05:02And the VAR was, of course, not involved in yes or no a second yellow.
05:08But in general, I think it's less judges not on an evening.
05:12Less judges if we've seen this a few more times.
05:16James?
05:18What was the problem for Kwanzaa?
05:20He didn't feel really well.
05:23From the moment the game started till the moment we had to take him off,
05:27he felt a bit of pressure.
05:29I think he said on his chest, but it went so fast that he came off
05:33and the game started again.
05:35So I have to ask him exactly, but I think he said he didn't feel really well.
05:40So it was not an injury, but more not feeling really well.
05:44He was, though, in the last few days a bit ill.
05:51Ill is the word I think he used.
05:53But we thought he was on his way back.
05:57But maybe that had something to do with it.
06:00I have to ask, but it had nothing to do with an injury.
06:04I know you got booked.
06:06I didn't get booked.
06:08I was wondering how you kept so calm at the end.
06:11You were very friendly with the officials.
06:13Do you have any advice for other managers to keep calm at a decision like this?
06:18I don't think I'm known in Holland for the person
06:21that always stays calm with referee decisions.
06:26Although I do think they have a wrong opinion about me over there
06:29when it comes to referee decisions.
06:34Decision is made.
06:35You can't change it.
06:38When he didn't give the second yellow,
06:40nobody thought it would have had such a big impact 30 seconds later.
06:45I haven't asked him, but I'm 99.9 per cent sure
06:50that I wasn't the only one who felt...
06:54I would use the word, which I cannot use anymore.
06:58What other word could I use?
07:01Not the best.
07:03Which didn't feel not the best.
07:05But I'm 99.9 per cent sure that when Benegval scored,
07:08the referee was like,
07:10is this really happening?
07:12Because he couldn't change it anymore.
07:14It was for him also far from ideal, I think.
07:18That's why I say 99.9, because I couldn't look in his head.
07:22And he didn't have to tell what he felt.