ReactionArne Slot press conference: Verdict on 'very important' victory for Liverpool at Inter

The Reds claimed three points from their league-phase trip to San Siro on Tuesday night courtesy of a hard-fought clean sheet and 88th-minute Dominik Szoboszlai winner from the penalty spot.

Success in Italy bolstered Slot's men's position in the qualification places for the next stages, ahead of meetings with Marseille and Qarabag in January.

• Read our match report from San Siro here

Read a full transcript from the head coach's post-match press conference below.

On how he would sum up 'what he got from his players' on the night...

All I could ask for, I think. The fourth game in 10 days, that's not what you see a lot in football. Three in seven is already a lot, let alone four in 10. With only 13 outfield players available with Premier League or Champions League experience. After the blow we had conceding the 3-3 in extra time against Leeds, where we deserved so much more. Then to go into this stadium against such a strong Inter Milan team, you couldn't have asked for more if you look at our performance.

Again, we hardly gave away a chance. The biggest one they had was I think just before half-time, after we had to again - the players, and me included and our fans - accept a referee decision that could have gone another way as well. But that has been the story of our season, as some other things. So, great mentality. Second half, we got better and better and better. We were close to scoring already with Conor Bradley and Hugo Ekitike. And in the end we got a penalty which if that is a penalty, we could have had 10 this season. That was a penalty that I don't think in the Premier League would have been given, but again, I think the first goal was more clear a goal than it was wrong that the penalty was given.

On if he feels such decisions even themselves out...

It shouldn't be like that, of course. But I prefer to score in the 86th minute the 1-0 than in the 38th minute the 1-0. But it shouldn't be like that. I think so many times this season referee decisions have gone against us, either in the Premier League or Champions League. I think this weekend I saw a handball at Brighton against West Ham in the lead-up to a goal and that was allowed. Probably people will tell me, 'No, there was something different between it.' But there's always something that's different, like the goal we scored against [Manchester] City. So, yeah, another time where the players showed great mentality and this time we could win it instead of ending it with a draw.

On how big a moment this win could be in the season...

That's difficult to see because we cannot foresee the future. But I think it was mainly for us very important that we got a result today, because with an away game to Marseille also still to play and one home game, we needed points. And we know how difficult that would be over here, because they have been so, so, so strong in this stadium, in the league but definitely also in the Champions League. So it's a great result, like it was against Real Madrid. It's not funny but it's the weird thing that we've had a few special results this season; so, beating Arsenal, beating Real Madrid, beating Newcastle away, beating Aston Villa where they won 10 in a row and only lost against us. So that's why it's so surprising to see that we drop points in so many other games, although there are multiple reasons, but one of them I just said.

On the reasons for the team's inconsistency this season...

I think most of our performances, except for two or three, have been the same but not always we got what we deserved. So, against Leeds we conceded one chance, like we did today, but against Leeds we conceded three goals because the VAR intervened for a penalty and we conceded [from] a set-piece. Against Sunderland we didn't even concede a chance until the 96th minute but before that we already conceded a goal by a deflection. If you simply look at the last four games, the players have fought so hard, showed so much mentality and I don't think every time we have got what we deserved lately. But tonight, at last we did in again difficult circumstances.

On the performance of his midfield and reaction to supporters singing his name...

I don't think I would do justice to only tell you that our midfield worked so hard. I think I saw all of the players showing a lot of commitment to the game plan. In the first half we tried to keep a plus one in and around our last line, but after the substitutions they made we struggled more and more with [Manuel] Akanji in the middle, who dribbled into the midfield. So, we said during half-time, we have to be more aggressive in our press, we're going to go more one-v-one. Then, of course, it is important your midfield sprints back if they play over you, but it was the same for our attackers.

I think you are highlighting our midfield but I would like to highlight one player because he's been highlighted a few times also in a negative way and this time I would like to highlight [Ibrahima] Konate, who played a very good game against two very good strikers together with Virgil [van Dijk]. I don't think they made a mistake at all; like I said, we only conceded one chance and that is a big compliment if you play against such a great team.

And what it means for me that the fans sing my name, that means a lot for me, but I said yesterday, it's not about me - it's about the team. They were also there for the team. Again, so many away fans in difficult circumstances for the club and it shows you one more time if things go against us, or if there is a hard time, we are all there for each other, we fight together and that's what the fans and the players showed today.

On clarifying a discussion during an interview with Clarence Seedorf and 'where the initiative comes from' in the situation with Mohamed Salah being resolved...

No. I'm happy that you asked that question because Clarence said 'in his opinion' and I said, 'Yes, that's your own opinion.' So, I didn't say anything about that, who should make the first step or whatever. It was his opinion. So, I am happy that I can clarify that, headlines tomorrow or not. What I've said, it was his opinion.

On 'where he stands' on the situation now...

Where I stand is that tonight it should all be about the players that are here. In the rich history Liverpool has, they have had many of these evenings but in the season we are in, I think if you have an away win in this stadium against such a strong team then it should be about the midfield or about Ibou or about the ones that are here. They deserve all the credits. I fully understand on Friday I get a lot of questions again about other things, but tonight it should be about the ones who are here.

On how he's managed Konate's form...

I think the hardest thing for him, but also for me, is to see that during large parts of the game he's played very well, also in games he was involved in goals we conceded. Let's take the PSV game - I think until that moment he played a very good game. That has been so many times, so it is not a surprise to me that he again played well but I am so happy for him that we kept a clean sheet and he wasn't involved in anything that happened tonight.

He has also been very unlucky in that if you make a mistake, or if you are involved in a mistake, that this ball constantly has gone in. That is the situation we've been in for weeks, months maybe. Something about the referee decisions, every chance the other team gets is a goal, every mistake we make leads immediately to a goal. Again tonight, we weren't able to finish our first chances but because we kept a clean sheet, when we scored our last chance of the game we could win it today.

On Szoboszlai taking the penalty and the Hungarian doing whatever Slot asks of him this season...

Yeah, that last thing for sure, because I've asked a lot of him, a lot of different positions. Although no matter what position he plays, I always try to bring him in certain positions. I think what is also special with him is how much he runs in a game. So, he's one of the few players that played four games in the last 10 days. Maybe Ibou also all the time 90 [minutes] together with Virgil, but they play in a different position, so centre-backs don't run as much as midfielders have to do.

So, it's special what he's doing physically but also football-wise because, again, he played a good game and he stood up in a difficult moment. Because it's not easy, 86 minutes, your first penalty for Liverpool, I think - maybe in the [Community] Shield, so in other moments – during a game on 0-0, so that's a special moment. But he has a great shot and he delivered because he takes a lot of penalties for the national team and for his former clubs as well.

On Liverpool's form in the Champions League compared to the Premier League...

I think we've done well in the Champions League apart from our result against PSV at home, of course. In the Premier League, I think we're not the only team who are finding it hard to win games. We've been a few times so close to better results than we had and if we would have got the ones we deserved but we didn't get for the reasons I've already explained a few of, then with a few points more we would have been in a much, much, much better position than we are now. The margins are so small. I think if we would have won against Leeds, that would have been completely normal.

I can come up with a few other moments where we deserved much more than we got. So yeah, as a result of that, it's been a season with ups and downs. But, indeed, in the Champions League we've done mainly well. I don't think it's a psychological issue because we have shown so much mentality throughout this season with all the setbacks we've faced, one of them this Saturday and much bigger ones before the season and during the season. I think I can only compliment my players about how much mentality and fight experience they've shown throughout this whole season. That we've been multiple times very unlucky, that's also clear and that has led to the position we are in in the league.

On the energy Liverpool produced...

It's, indeed, true that tactics are one thing, but if you have quality players that play against each other and both tactics are right then it's also a lot about energy and about fighting spirit. That's what I saw today, by the way, from both sides. That's why it was such a tight game, not many chances for both teams. But I knew before we came here [they were] a very experienced team, disciplined, working hard, can press you really high, can go to a low block and if they are in a low block they can counter-attack so good. So, they have a lot of weapons and I think we've tried as much as we can to control the game when we had possession, to be calm and keep it as long as we could. What made the difference in the end was, I think, a great defensive performance from our team, like it was from Inter Milan. And then the margins are small and then a disallowed goal in the first half or a penalty can make the difference. Unfortunately for us, we've been so many times on the wrong side of things, but tonight I think we deserved to be on the right side. But the margins were small.