Liverpool head coach Arne Slot believes it is “too early” to describe his team at the best in the world, despite being labelled as such by Brentford boss Thomas Frank.
Frank heaped praise on Slot’s side following their 2-0 victory at the Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday, with substitute Darwin Núñez scoring twice in stoppage time to move Liverpool six points clear at the top of the Premier League table.
The Anfield club have also won all six of their games in the revamped Champions League this year and have progressed to the Carabao Cup semifinals. But Slot insists his team still have work to do if they are to be considered the best in the world.
“[Frank’s] opinion definitely means something to me because he has done so well at Brentford without spending a crazy amount of money,” Slot said.
“Every time his teams perform and make it so hard for the top five or six, so his opinion means something to me. But I think it’s far too early to say these things. The Champions League format this season is also difficult to judge because everyone faces different teams. It is always nice to get compliments.”
Liverpool will hope to guarantee their progression to the round of 16 of the Champions League by avoiding defeat against Lille at Anfield on Tuesday. A point will be enough to ensure a finish in the top eight, and therefore avoid having to qualify via the playoffs.
However they will have to achieve that feat without the help of forward Diogo Jota, who remains sidelined after sustaining an injury in the 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest last week.
“Jota [will be back] a bit earlier than Joe [Gomez],” Slot said. “Both are expected back within weeks, not months. I’ve said many times before, the last stage of rehab is the most difficult. It’s clear we expect them back within the upcoming weeks.”
Jota’s absence will provide another opportunity for Núñez to impress in the No.9 role following his match-winning cameo against Brentford. Reflecting on the Uruguay international’s form this season, Slot said: “The most difficult thing in football is to find consistency.
“Only a few players in the world are able to be at the same level every three days, then there’s a big group of players that are able to play very good many times but not every single time. Darwin is one of the players that belongs to that second group. The next step for him is to go into the bracket of players who every three days are outstanding. It’s a nice challenge for him to go to that group.”
