Liverpool head coach Arne Slot praised his side’s resilience in their 2-1 victory over Chelsea, calling it their toughest test under his leadership, Soccernet.football reports.
Mohamed Salah opened the scoring with a penalty after Curtis Jones was fouled by Levi Colwill. Jones then scored the winner shortly after Nicolas Jackson had equalized, securing Liverpool’s return to the top of the table.
Slot’s strong start continued, with Liverpool winning 10 of their 11 games this season. Despite Chelsea’s dominance in possession and chances, the Reds dug deep to claim all three points.
Slot was particularly pleased with his team’s work rate in what was certainly a challenging contest for the hosts.
“Many other games were hard, but this might have been the hardest, maybe because of the amount of quality players they have and the structure they have. We had to fight really hard to get this one over the line,” he told BBC Match of the Day.
“We defended so strongly, throughout the whole team. There was incredible work rate. The game became difficult for us because there were a few decisions, in my opinion, that didn’t go for us.
“The most crucial was when we thought we had the penalty before half-time. To go 2-0 [up] before half-time would make a massive difference from 1-0. Then, we conceded, but we stepped up again and scored the second.
“The better the teams you face, the more you need it [fight]. In the Premier League, there are so many good teams. If you want to win, at least you need to fight and then, hopefully, the individuals can make the difference.
“It helps if you play against a Chelsea, it is a big game, and everyone feels it. We felt it and the fans felt it because they were there for us today. We showed up, that was the most important thing.”
