Liverpool manager, Arne Slot, has insisted that his Arsenal counterpart, Mikel Arteta, has created a ‘special’ team with the Gunners ahead of both sides’ Premier League tie on Sunday evening.
Slot said this while hitting back at Arteta’s critique amid Arsenal finishing the season without a trophy.
Arsenal will now end the season without a trophy after they were eliminated from the UEFA Champions League by Paris Saint-Germain a few days ago.
The Premier League North London club will give a guard of honour to newly crowned Premier League champions Liverpool before kick-off at Anfield on Sunday.
But following Arsenal’s Champions League exit, Arteta received criticism for his team’s two performances against PSG, as well as their recent Premier League form, which has seen them fall 15 points behind champions Liverpool in the table.
However, Slot has dismissed the criticism Arteta has received following his team’s failure to win a trophy since their FA Cup success in 2020.
“Mikel should get, in my opinion, a lot of credit for the way his team plays,” Slot said at his pre-match press conference ahead of Liverpool’s clash with Arsenal.
“Arsenal can play almost every style. It is a big accomplishment to be able to have only one style, but Mikel’s team are capable of being different, as we saw in the two games against PSG.
“They can play off pieces. They can defend in a low block and be the dominant team. They can play a high press. They can build up from the back or play the long ball.
“Every part of the game they are good, and that means it is difficult to analyse them because you don’t know what you are going to face.
“The only way you can have that is if you work at a club for so many years, but not all managers who have been at clubs a long time can play so many styles. This is special. You don’t see it a lot,” he said.
