Findings from Arne Slot’s inaugural win for Liverpool over Real Betis

Liverpool earned their first victory of the Arne Slot era in the early hours of Saturday morning, with the Reds beating Real Betis 1-0 over in the United States.

The Dutch coach tasted defeat in his first pre-season outing, a tame 1-0 loss at the hands of Championship Preston North End behind closed doors. But the Reds put in a significantly stronger performance against Real Betis in Pittsburgh, dominating much of the game.

There were plenty of encouraging signs for supporters ahead of meetings with Arsenal and Manchester United across the Atlantic, with the Reds still missing a host of international stars who are recovering from this summer’s continental competitions.

Here are four things we noticed during Liverpool’s first pre-season victory.

After almost nine years of full-throttle Jurgen Klopp football, it’s naturally going to take time for Liverpool players to adapt to a new voice. However, Slot has been very clear about the style he wants to implement, with a possession-based, attacking strategy the name of the game.

Despite a slightly shaky start to proceedings, Liverpool quickly took a grip on the match, passing Real Betis to death. They finished the match with 63% of the ball, making almost double the number of passes as their opponents.

The energy and pressing was there for all to see, too. They forced plenty of turnovers and kept the pressure on the Real Betis goal, totaling nine shots, three on target and three big chances across the match. Had they made slightly better decisions in the final third, they would have won more handsomely.

Even Slot’s introduction of Liverpool’s younger heads in the second half didn’t negatively impact their rhythm, with fans likely encouraged by the first glimpse of a new philosophy.

Liverpool used 22 players against Real Betis but it was their youngest who shone brightest. Trey Nyoni left supporters purring with his excellent 41-minute outing having initially replaced the injured Curtis Jones halfway through the first period.

The teenager, who only turned 17 at the end of June, dazzled following his introduction. It took him just four minutes to fire a ball into Dominik Szoboszlai that led to Liverpool’s opener and the confident starlet only got better as the game wore on.

Playing in central midfield, Nyoni finished up with 52 touches, 91% pass accuracy and eight passes into the final third – the latter the most of any player in the match. Expect him to get plenty of minutes over the next few weeks.

It wasn’t always clear what formation Liverpool were employing on Saturday. Slot traditionally operates with a 4-3-3 – even if he has rebuffed suggestions that his teams play in a defined system – but Harvey Elliott and Szoboszlai often found themselves playing as number tens, with no designated center-forward in front of them.

This was largely out of necessity. Diogo Jota has only just teamed up with the Reds in the United States, while Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo and Jayden Danns are all unavailable. However, it was intriguing to see how Slot attempted to navigate his lack of striking options. He could have simply plonked Mohamed Salah up top, but instead, he attempted to change the setup as a whole.

Speaking after the match, the Dutchman did admit that Liverpool fans shouldn’t expect to see a striker-less system very often – if at all – during his tenure, though.

“During the season you will see us play with a real striker, but at this moment we have no one available. That is maybe out of necessity, but for the rest, the style of play, with trying to build out from the back, that is our style,” stated the 45-year-old.

Despite making a lightning quick start to his Liverpool career, Szoboszlai finished his debut season on the bench. After a torrid run of form around the new year and some nagging injury issues, the Hungary midfielder looked short on confidence when called upon down the stretch.

A tepid Euro 2024 campaign was hardly a significant morale boost, but the promise of a new era may instill some belief in the 23-year-old. Slot’s system should suit the former RB Leipzig midfielder, allowing him to play closer to the opposition penalty area and with fewer defensive responsibilities.

He certainly looked to be operating with greater freedom against Real Betis, picking up spaces in between the lines as a number ten. He also found the only goal of the game, receiving the ball in the pocket and playing a lovely one-two with Mohamed Salah before sliding a low drive past former teammate Adrian.

It was an encouraging performance across the board, but Szoboszlai’s was notably impressive. Under Slot, he could be a different animal.

READ THE LATEST LIVERPOOL NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS & GOSSIP