Arne Slot defends ‘improved’ Liverpool ace after Jamie Carragher took aim in Fulham debacle

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Mistakes usually only happen to Virgil van Dijk once in a blue moon, and Fulham certainly benefitted amid a rare-off day from Liverpool’s usually-peerless captain last time out at Craven Cottage.

Whenever a goal is proceeded by a sublime piece of control, comparisons with the legendary Dennis Bergkamp are never too far away.

So, as you might imagine, Rodrigo Muniz’s sublime strike during Fulham’s 3-2 win over Liverpool last Sunday had the phrase ‘Bergkamp-esque’ doing the rounds all over social media.

Muniz plucked the ball out the sky beautifully. And, in one swift move, the Fulham number nine outfoxed Virgil van Dijk before slotting past Caoimhin Kelleher. Having been given quite the runaround by Everton’s Beto in the Merseyside derby too, Arne Slot is the first to admit that Van Dijk has enjoyed better spells in a Liverpool jersey.

Though the Dutchman is not, of course, the only Liverpool player who endured an afternoon to forget in West London.

Andy Robertson gifted Alex Iwobi his 32nd minute strike. Meanwhile, Jamie Carragher was less than impressed by Ibrahima Konate’s dithering as the Frenchman too struggled to cope with the intensity of Marco Silva’s fired-up forwards.

Arne Slot defends Ibrahima Konate after Liverpool defender struggled at Fulham

Konate is confident he can ascend to higher levels than Van Dijk in the coming years.

Clearly, the self-assured France international is not there yet, however. Performances such as this still need to be eradicated before Konate can also be considered a bonafide Premier League great.

Arne Slot replaced the former RB Leipzig ace with the returning Conor Bradley, meanwhile, with 67 minutes on the clock at Craven Cottage.

He explains that this was less a comment on Konate’s performance, and more a reflection on the creative qualities Bradley could bring to the table with Liverpool two goals behind.

“For me, if I take Konate out for [another] centre-back, that tells you I am not happy with his game or he is injured,” Slot explains. “If I bring on an attacker or midfielder, it just says we need to take more risks.

“To take him off [at Fulham], it was for a sure for a player who can score easier than Ibou can. Taking him off at Fulham has nothing to do with where he is at. It was about taking more risks to score and we created quite a lot.”

As Bradley assisted Luis Diaz’s consolation, it was a decision quickly justified.

Slot says Konate has ‘improved’ in possession since he arrived at Anfield

Slot, meanwhile, feels that Konate has actually gone up a level in recent months with regards to his quality and composure in possession.

Konate has been criticised at times since joining Liverpool back in 2021 for a tendency to misplace the odd pass when attempting to play out from the back. This, though, is an area of his game where improvements have been made in Slot’s more considered approach.

“Ibou has improved on the ball,” the former Feyenoord boss says. “Not that he was bad [before]! He was France international who played World Cup final!

“[But] he has improved in his build up.”

While Liverpool are set to tie both Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk down to new deals, discussions to extend Konate’s contract are ongoing.

He is entering the final 12 months on his deal at Anfield.