It has only been a few months, but new Liverpool manager Arne Slot is already shaking things up with some neat new tactics.
And so far, fans are absolutely loving it.
The Reds won their second consecutive pre-season game in Philadelphia as they defeated Arsenal 2-1.
But there was one moment in particular that really captured the attention of supporters .
Almost two-thirds of the way through the match, Liverpool were a goal up thanks to Mo Salah’s opener when they won a valuable corner.
But what happened next took many by surprise.
As Kostas Tsimikas took his place by the corner flag, ready to launch an in-swinger into a dangerous position, the rest of his team took their places for what looked to be a carefully-planned set-piece formation.
A total of eight Liverpool players took their place on the edge of the penalty area, clustering near the top right-hand corner of the box.
As Tsimikas prepared his cross, the players all rapidly scattered around the box, as they looked to cause chaos among the ranks of the Arsenal defence.
Some made a beeline straight for the near and far posts, whilst other hung back and dotted themselves around the penalty area.
While no goal came from the unusual strategy, it did appear to make it difficult for Gunners goalkeeper Karl Hein to get a hold on the ball.
He was forced to punch the ball away instead, before Arsenal were ultimately awarded a free kick.
And what did Reds supporters make of this glimpse into what the Dutch manager could bring to the team?
“Liverpool’s new corner routine. I’m in love with it,” said one fan on X.
Another added: “Finally corners will be interesting to watch.”
And one joked: “This is so funny but so sexy.”
Pre-season is a time for hopes to be high as supporters await the gruelling season to come, with one also jokingly predicting: “We are about to score 50 goals just from corners this season.”
“I like to call it the snooker ball break [as] they just spread everywhere – I like it,” another said.
Meanwhile, Slot had a lot of positives to take away from the win, even though Arsenal posed much more of a threat in the second half.
“I think even though it’s a friendly, you always want to aim for a win,” he said in his press conference. “You should aim for a win even if you have a small-sided game during a training session.
“You need to win your games, you try to do everything to win. So that’s a good thing that we did that today but I’m more pleased about the way we did so.
“Of course I saw the second half that we had a hard time with Arsenal – they dominated possession completely. But we defended really well and I was really pleased to see this because (there were) a lot of bodies behind the ball every time they arrived into our 16. Real big, open chances I don’t think they created in the second half.
“First half, after the first 10 minutes, it was an equal game, where both teams could have scored a few goals more. So, (I’m) pleased to see how we played the first half and how we defended the second half.”
The corner tactic is reportedly borrowed from American football where it is known as a ‘sugar huddle’ and is designed to make marking exceptionally difficult.
While this strategy has certainly been used by teams other than Liverpool in football, ex-Reds manager Jurgen Klopp never employed the tactic that much.
It marks one of the first new distinct features that Slot seems to have brought to the club ahead of the 2024/25 Premier League season, leaving fans excited to see what else he could introduce to the team.
Liverpool kick off the new season by hosting the newly-promoted Ipswich Town on Saturday 17 August.
News Summary:
- Liverpool fans excited after spotting new tactic under Slot against Arsenal
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