Sunday’s convincing victory over Tottenham Hotspur merely reaffirmed what many had suspected for some time: Liverpool are the finest team in England. What was anticipated to be a closely contested three-way battle for the Premier League crown was transformed into a Liverpool-dominated procession, underlining their supremacy.
While the celebrations had only just begun, there were already attempts by some to downplay Liverpool’s remarkable season. This scepticism frustrated captain Virgil van Dijk, who openly criticised Michael Owen for suggesting that Liverpool’s 2024–25 season lacked the brilliance it could have had, due to their Champions League last-16 exit and Carabao Cup final defeat to Newcastle United.
“Who was the first Dutch player to captain a team to the English league title?”… 🇳🇱 pic.twitter.com/d3NzTiQ0U4
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) April 27, 2025
It took the voices of a few icons from Liverpool’s historical rivals to truly capture the magnitude of Arne Slot’s achievement.
Rivals Give Credit Where It Is Due
Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane, speaking on Sky Sports, remarked:
“We have to praise the manager because he’s done an amazing job. It was a decent group when he took over, but if someone had said at the start of the season that Liverpool would be where they are now, you wouldn’t have believed them, you’d have thought they needed locking up!”
Gary Neville, another Manchester United legend, admitted he had significantly underestimated Liverpool’s potential this season. Before the campaign began, he had predicted Liverpool would finish behind Manchester United and Tottenham.
“I’m stunned by Liverpool,”
Neville confessed on Sky Sports.
“For Slot to take over from Jurgen Klopp, a massive personality and character who was loved beyond words by Liverpool fans, you just thought there was going to be a drop-off, everyone thought there would be a drop-off, I certainly did. But Slot’s been perfect in terms of what Liverpool needed this season.”
Neville’s admission carries particular weight given his earlier forecasts. When Jurgen Klopp announced his departure, many expected turbulence. Smooth transitions are rare when succeeding a beloved figure, yet Slot managed the impossible.
Klopp’s Legacy Laid the Groundwork
It must be acknowledged that Klopp laid a firm foundation for his successor. He was instrumental in the much-needed midfield restructuring during the summer of 2023. Klopp even prepared the Anfield faithful for Slot’s arrival by encouraging supporters to embrace the incoming coach, humorously suggesting that by not winning the league or Champions League in his final season, he had lowered expectations somewhat.
Nonetheless, few could have anticipated Slot would mount a serious title challenge in his debut campaign in English football.
Even Neville believed Klopp’s departure would weigh heavily on the team’s performance.
“My view would be that the impact of Klopp leaving will take its toll,”
Neville argued.
“That’s going off evidence based on the history of losing a manager like that. I think there’ll be some pain this season for Liverpool, and it could cost them… Liverpool are well below the level of Arsenal and City, and I don’t think that’s shocking to anybody.”
Indeed, statistical projections echoed Neville’s caution. Analysts at Opta calculated Liverpool’s chances of securing the title at just 5.1 percent at the start of the season.
Slot’s Vision: Winning Mentality From Day One
Yet, Slot remained undeterred, convinced he had inherited a squad capable of competing for major trophies. His belief was immediately evident during his first team meeting in America, as Andy Robertson recalled:
“I remember his first team meeting in America,”
the left-back shared,
“and he basically said, ‘We finished third last season and the season before, but we now want to finish above the other two.’ So, in his mind, it was clear that he had come to Liverpool to win trophies. It wasn’t like he’d be happy with the top four. The players could get on board with that attitude.”
One of the reasons Liverpool’s board turned to Slot was his footballing philosophy, which aligned closely with Klopp’s established approach. After Xabi Alonso committed his future to Bayer Leverkusen, Ruben Amorim and Roberto De Zerbi were considered, but Slot stood out as the perfect fit for the Merseyside giants.
Slot’s impressive Eredivisie title win with Feyenoord, achieved despite a relatively modest budget compared to Dutch rivals Ajax and PSV, only strengthened his candidacy.
Richard Hughes, Liverpool’s sporting director, acknowledged what drew the club to Slot:
“In all the metrics,”
Hughes told reporters in July,
“Arne’s Feyenoord team came out really well: the way they played with real front-foot, attacking football, played with intelligence, played with passion, and I think those are all attributes that we welcome here at Liverpool. I think they lend really well with the current squad that we have, our supporters and the football club as a whole.”
Evolution Without Revolution
Liverpool’s pre-season tour of the United States further boosted optimism. Victories over Real Betis, Arsenal, and Manchester United hinted at a side adapting quickly to Slot’s methods. The core of Klopp’s tactics — heavy pressing and swift transitions — remained, yet there was a perceptible shift towards a more controlled style of play.
🚨 Liverpool really spent £0 and won the Premier League title. pic.twitter.com/ym712GY8Na
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) April 27, 2025
Mohamed Salah spoke openly about this evolution:
“We are now trying to control the ball all the time,”
he told the club’s official website in August.
“Before, it wasn’t really the number one thing, because with Jurgen most of the time we tried to counter-attack or counter-press and try to win the ball as high as possible. We’re still doing that, but also when you have the ball, you have more time to keep it and just try to move it around.”
Slot’s emphasis on possession and composure proved to be a masterstroke. Liverpool began the season in scintillating form, winning 11 of their first 13 Premier League fixtures, providing Slot with a relatively smooth induction into the English top flight.
Despite the successful start, Slot made only minimal changes to the squad during the summer transfer window. Federico Chiesa arrived late in the window, after the season had already commenced with convincing victories over Ipswich Town and Brentford.
Slot was keenly aware he was leading players who had only ever known Klopp at Anfield.
“And they didn’t just have nine years with the former manager,”
Slot explained,
“they had nine successful years!
“Then, you always wonder, ‘Are things going to change?’ We did not bring in many new players, so then it is quite normal if you look at the teams we are competing with who did bring in players, and you think, ‘What is going to happen this season?’ Especially because nearly all of our players were still on holiday two weeks before the season started [because of Euro 2024 and the Copa America]. So, that is why it was really helpful we got results from the start and they saw from the start the playing style wasn’t going to change that much.”
Slot was careful, however, to introduce subtle positional adjustments, fine-tuning the team without disrupting the successful formula that had been so carefully cultivated over the past decade.
Through his steady leadership, tactical acumen, and respect for Liverpool’s traditions, Arne Slot has achieved what few thought possible: making the post-Klopp era look not only manageable but, remarkably, triumphant.
