ReactionArne Slot press conference: FA Cup win, 'beautiful goals', Ngumoha and more
The Reds advanced to the competition's fourth round - and a home tie versus Brighton & Hove Albion - at Anfield on Monday night.
Goals from Dominik Szoboszlai and Jeremie Frimpong were followed by a mistake from the former that allowed Adam Phillips to respond for the visitors in the first half.
Substitutes Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike then combined together twice to score once each in the closing stages.
Read every word of head coach Slot's reaction below.
On his summary of the performance...
A good win. That's not the performance, that's the result. We wanted to go into the next round, that's what we did. Four beautiful goals. Shots from outside the box; it's not always easy to unlock a low block, for any team in the world but definitely also not for us. You have a few weapons to do so. Set-pieces, as we see so many times, especially in the Premier League. A shot from outside the box, a one-v-one. We saw today a shot from outside the box and a one-v-one from Jeremie Frimpong. And in the end we saw with the third one some individual skills from Curtis [Jones], Hugo and Flo which led to a good goal. So yeah, some good goals.
On whether he feels it was 'a good job done or expected a little bit more'...
No, I think it's every home game the same, when you see a team in red that's constantly in ball possession.
On Szoboszlai's error for the goal Barnsley scored and whether he has spoken to him about it...
No, in that moment I thought a lot towards half-time but I chose to inform them in the best possible way for us to be more fluid, more tempo, more able to create chances. Which didn't work out that well because again second half we created a few chances but not a lot. I have my opinion about that, which I'm definitely going to share with him. And it's not the first time - now I'm talking generally - that we are 2-0 up, there's no problems in the game and then we concede a sloppy or easy goal. But this one stands definitely out, even for us, when it is about conceding an easy and sloppy goal.
On whether incidents such as that are 'holding Liverpool back'...
It doesn't help to concede a goal if you're 2-0 up. Normally when you're 2-0 up, the other team is close to maybe accepting their loss, especially if you can keep going and have the ball so much. Then usually teams are 'We're 2-0 down, we hardly touched the ball', now they are probably not as aggressive in defending and then you can score the third and the fourth. But if you then give away an easy goal, which we have done so many times this season, then it's a big difference in mindset for the other team that are 2-0 down and never have the ball or they are 2-1 and never have the ball because then they do feel, 'Yeah, in the first half when we never had the ball in one moment we could score a goal, so maybe we can do this again.' So, it's definitely not helpful for us. Even tonight we could see a lot of things being the same as we've seen so many times this season.
On Barnsley's appeals for a penalty in the second half and if he had any concerns it could be awarded...
No, there was no VAR so when he gives it then even if he would have made a mistake, there was not a possibility to correct it. From what's been told to me, it wasn't a penalty and Dominik played the ball. But I have to see it back to give you my own opinion, this is the opinion of other people. I've seen [on] Thursday evening things twice in Arsenal's box that were more a penalty than this one - when I just looked at it with the eye, without seeing it on video. But I could even live with the fact we didn't get one against Arsenal, although this season we've conceded penalties - referees have given penalties against us - even after VAR interventions in incidents that were less than the two incidents that happened at Arsenal. But I could live with the outcome at Arsenal and I could live with the outcome today.
On Rio Ngumoha's condition after he went off in the second half...
I assume and think and expect it's cramp, so it tells you - it tells Rio - that I expect that a Premier League game is more intense than this one. It's very nice for him to again make 70 minutes, but that it's still very hard work to be ready for 90 in the Premier League. But that's completely normal for a 17-year-old, make no mistake about that. It's already great for him and for Liverpool and for everybody following us that a 17-year-old makes so many minutes in a Liverpool shirt. So, let's hope he can continue and we can bring him further and further towards 90 minutes at Premier League level.
On the importance of being able to bring on senior players from the bench in the second half...
It is, for every team, very important to have strength in depth in your squad. We could see it when we played Arsenal, when they made their five substitutions. Today, I mixed the line-up a little bit, it wasn't as Plymouth last season, it wasn't as Crystal Palace this season in the League Cup. One, because we take this competition very serious [and] second of all because I didn't also have the possibility to do so because I couldn't make 11 substitutions. I could, but then I would have to look at the U21s and U18s. I think it showed tonight that we needed a lot of first-team players to win this game, so I think not that it is a compliment to myself, but I think I made the right decision to play a lot of starters. I also had no other opportunity, although I could have played four or five U21 players but I chose not to do so.
On whether he was impressed by Barnsley's 'resilience'...
Yes, of course. I think they can be proud of themselves, how they did and how difficult they made it for us. A game plan that looked very similar to a lot of teams that are coming here. How many games did we play this season? Probably around 30? I think 28 of my pre-match meetings I could just throw in the bin, I think only once or twice the team did what they did the 20 weeks before. Arsenal was one of them, they just played against us what we're used to, but Barnsley always plays a 4-3-3 and today decided to go with five, which I can completely understand and which I would have done if I was their manager as well. But another time, a meeting that you try to show them what to expect, what they usually do, but they did something different, and by doing that they made it really difficult for us. So, compliments for their game plan and compliments for the desire they had, the willingness they had to fight for a result. For a long time they were in the game because I think it was the 84th [minute] I think, something like that, when we scored the 3-1. It's a compliment to them.
On whether he was frustrated by an individual error allowing Barnsley to score and get back into the game...
Yes, but I can tell you it's not the only frustration I have. Definitely, we make it difficult for ourselves in moments like this. Not only for ourselves, I think again there were 60,000 fans tonight showing up, supporting us and I would have loved - and the players would have loved - to have given them probably not a 2-1, waiting until the 83rd minute before it's 3-1. But it did happen and that is something I would love to see differently. Again, I think we tried - not that it is a compliment for us but we had the ball and what else can you do than having the ball? Creating chances.
On the news that Conor Bradley requires surgery on the knee injury he sustained at Arsenal...
First of all, let's talk about him because Trent [Alexander-Arnold] was leaving and Conor Bradley already replaced him last season really well a few times. I think the year before I came [he] also had a good spell. So, I think he felt - and I felt the same - this is now going to be your time and then he missed out on so many games because of injury already, because of mainly hamstring injuries. Coming back from that, being in the team, progressing, doing better and better, staying fit and then something like this happens. In a season where he thought before it started, 'This has to be my season' and I thought the same, to maybe play six, seven or eight games is a big, big, big blow for him and I also think about Northern Ireland, where he is trying to reach the World Cup.
So, it's an enormous blow for him, but as a result of that it's a big blow for us as well because I hope that you don't think I would like to play Dominik Szoboszlai as a right full-back. Jeremie Frimpong has to play a lot of minutes, also comes back from an injury, has missed out on three or four months of a lot of playing time. I liked him again today, by the way, but I have to make sure he is able to play again at the weekend and then we go to Marseille and then we go to Bournemouth. It is nine games in January with six defenders available. I have to manage it in the right way and I have to give enormous compliments to the players that are fit that we are 11 games unbeaten.