A new era is underway at Liverpool after Arne Slot dealt with the press for the very first time.
Slot has already been settling into life on Merseyside since arriving in June. However, until Friday, the Dutchman was yet to introduce himself to local reporters.
On Friday, as Liverpool kicked off their pre-season training, the new head coach did exactly that.
Slot covered a fair amount during a relatively long press conference, with sporting director Richard Hughes a surprise guest alongside him.
And as one of the most vocal pundits out there, Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has now given his take on how Slot performed at the AXA Training Centre.
Jamie Carragher delivers Arne Slot verdict
Slot will no doubt be aware of Carragher already. Although he was never a superstar in the mould of Steven Gerrard, the Liverpool academy graduate was a top player in his own right.
Since retiring, Carragher has become one of the most high-profile pundits around.
Although he’ll always be connected with Liverpool, Carragher is not always complimentary about the Reds and Slot will have to get used to that.
With the former Feyenoord boss having now given his first public appearance as Liverpool head coach, Carragher has already had his say on what he noticed.
READ MORE: Liverpool very close to announcing two new staff members for Arne Slot
“I thought he came across really well in his press conference,” the former centre-back told Sky Sports.
“Of course people are asking him questions and maybe trying to trip him up and get him to say something.
“I thought he was really concise and switched on and was sort of reading the question between the lines rather than what the question was,” Carragher added. “He knew where people were trying to take him.
“So, that bodes well for the future. I thought he dealt with it very well.”
What did Arne Slot says in his first press conference?
Those hoping for a Klopp style ‘doubters to believers’ line from Slot will have been left bitterly disappointed by Friday’s interview. However, we’re with Carragher on this one.
The very first question, for example, asked how the 45-year-old would position himself against Klopp’s ‘normal one’ claim.
Perhaps to the dismay of the journalist, Slot answered the baiting question with a very straight bat. He did not allow himself to be drawn into giving any soundbites. That was impressive.
Instead, Slot gave a clear picture of how he likes his team to play and built an outline of how he intends to use certain players.
It’s clear that Slot is going to be measured against Klopp for a little while yet at Liverpool. But by getting the likes of Carragher onside early, he can hopefully stem that narrative a little bit.
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