Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah insists the players are not putting any pressure on themselves despite a record-breaking start under new head coach Arne Slot.

The Egypt international provided an assist and then scored the decisive late second goal in the 2-0 Champions League victory over Bologna which made it eight wins from nine matches.

Slot is the first boss in the club’s history to start their reign with that level of success and it has not only allayed any initial concerns about how they would adapt during the transition period following Jurgen Klopp‘s departure but also led to a re-evaluation of expectations this season.

That is not something which is concerning the squad, though, with Salah telling UEFA.com: “It’s too early so we don’t have to put pressure on ourselves, we just have to take it game by game and see what will happen.”

However, captain Virgil van Dijk has warned the players have to do better to make life easier for themselves at times.

After taking an 11th-minute lead with Alexis Mac Allister‘s first Champions League goal, Slot’s side then struggled to build on that advantage and were grateful to goalkeeper Alisson Becker and twice the frame of the goal to keep them ahead at half-time.

There was a similar scenario at Wolves last weekend where, having gone ahead, they allowed their opponents back into the game and even after going 2-1 in front they did not manage the last 15 minutes particularly well.

“I think the first half was not the best – we gave some chances away because we were sloppy in possession,” said the Netherlands international.

“I think we could have done a lot better in the final third; a couple of times we came to the edge of the box and made the wrong decision in terms of the final pass.

“Hopefully we learn from it and do it much better, otherwise it could be a very tough season.

“We had a good meeting after the [Wolves] game in terms of how to manage the game much better, how not to let the opponent come back into the game and it’s still a work in progress obviously.

“We are still learning game management and trying to deal with difficult situations which occur in games.

“Hopefully we learn from it and do it much better, otherwise it could be a very tough season. It will be a tough season but can be much better in that sense.”

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Van Dijk said even though, the defeat to Nottingham Forest excepted, the start to the campaign had been better than expected Slot was still working on getting his ideas across.

“We have a lot of meetings. A lot of video meetings so you get exactly shown what he wants from us, what we do well and what we don’t do well,” he added.

“You don’t want to be sloppy because when you are sloppy you can give chances away and that is something we have to learn.

“We still have things to improve. We are winning games and it is a good feeling that we can still improve, so we have to keep going.”

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Trent Alexander-Arnold has been called up to the England squad for the October international break, but a number of Liverpool teammates were overlooked.

The Three Lions face Greece at Wembley and Finland in Helsinki in their two latest UEFA Nations League clashes on October 10 and 13 respectively.

It sees Carsley continue his role as interim head coach, having taking over duties following Gareth Southgate’s resignation after the Euros.

While there had been hopes for more favourable selections when it came to Liverpool players who had served under Carsley at U21s level, so far that has not proved to be the case.

Alexander-Arnold is again the only Reds representative this month, with Curtis Jones overlooked and Harvey Elliott ruled out of contention due to injury.

Joe Gomez is also absent along with Jarell Quansah and Tyler Morton, who are likely to be included in the U21s squad announced on Friday instead.

Carsley has called Dominic Solanke back to the England squad for the first time since November 2017, when he was still at Liverpool.

James Maddison, Jarrod Bowen and Harry Maguire are among those who have been left out.

Liverpool’s No. 66 figures to be a key player under Carsley, having started both of his games in charge so far against the Republic of Ireland and Finland.

He has done so in his natural role at right-back, after Southgate experimented him in midfield during the Euros – which saw Alexander-Arnold unfairly scapegoated.

Jones, meanwhile, was a favourite of Carsley’s when eligible for the U21s, but his omission comes having so far failed to break into Arne Slot‘s first-choice XI at Liverpool.

Goalkeepers: Pickford, Pope, Henderson

Defenders: Guehi, Colwill, Stones, Konsa, Alexander-Arnold, Walker, Lewis

Midfielders: Bellingham, Rice, Palmer, Foden, Gallagher, Gibbs-White, Gomes, Mainoo

Forwards: Kane, Saka, Grealish, Watkins, Gordon, Madueke, Solanke

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Liverpool’s next clash sees them head to Crystal Palace for a lunchtime kickoff in the Premier League, with the referee and VAR unlikely to be popular.

After seeing off Bologna at Anfield in the Champions League, the Reds will travel to Selhurst Park to face Palace in an early Saturday kickoff.

It gives Arne Slot‘s side a chance to cement their place at the top of the table heading into the October international break, after five wins from six so far.

Ahead of the game, the Premier League have confirmed the officiating team appointed for the game.

Few fans will be happy with the appointment of Simon Hooper as referee or David Coote as VAR, with the pair earning a dismal reputation in recent seasons.

Hooper produced a shocking performance during the infamous 2-1 loss to Tottenham last season, including a bizarre red card for Diogo Jota.

Meanwhile, Coote’s list of VAR errors includes failing to check the red-card challenge from Jordan Pickford on Virgil van Dijk in the Merseyside derby back in 2020.

Coote was also VAR for the 1-1 draw with Arsenal last season which saw him fail to spot a clear handball from Martin Odegaard in the penalty area.

PGMOL chief Howard Webb later admitted that was a mistake from Coote, but the 42-year-old has retained his recent status as one of the Premier League‘s top officials.

Adrian Holmes and Simon Long will run the line at Selhurst Park as Hooper’s assistant referees, while Leigh Doughty will be fourth official.

Natalie Aspinall will be assistant VAR alongside Coote, which will be only the second Liverpool fixture of her career as an official.

Aspinall, 42, was promoted to Premier League duty ahead of the 2022/23 season, with her only previous experience with the Reds being as assistant referee in the 1-0 win over Wolves in the FA Cup third round replay that campaign.

Hooper has refereed Liverpool on 10 occasions, seven coming in the Premier League, with his most recent involvement being the 3-3 draw with Aston Villa at the end of last season.

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Virgil van Dijk might not have statistically been Liverpool’s Man of the Match against Bologna, but his effortless display is worthy of recognition.

Liverpool’s captain turned 33 during the summer and is in the final year of his contract at Anfield, and yet he continues to roll back the clock with timeless performances.

There were fears when Van Dijk tore his ACL in late 2020 that he would not return the same player he once was – safe to say, there was never anything to worry about!

Against Bologna on Wednesday evening, Mohamed Salah laid claim to FotMob‘s Man of the Match with a performance rating of 8.5-out-of-10, with fellow goalscorer Alexis Mac Allister not far behind.

The Dutchman, meanwhile, finished his night with a statistical rating of 7.2, the best of the back four and Liverpool’s sixth-highest score of the night.

Van Dijk played with effortless ease, as he has continually achieved throughout his career, and it was not lost on FotMob‘s stats sheet:

• 74 touches – most of any Liverpool player, 88% accuracy
• 9 defensive actions – most of any Red
• Game-high 5 clearances
• 1 chance created, 3 passes into the final third
• Won 2/3 aerial duels – joint-second most

The captain was progressive with his passes; one of his biggest strengths is understanding the running lanes for his midfielders and setting them up accordingly, as he did with Ryan Gravenberch.

He blocked two shots, was never dispossessed by the Italian side and that air of authority was on full show from start to finish – whether it be with his actions or words.

Virgil van Dijk by the way.

Ludicrously good.

— Michael Reid (@michael_reid11) October 2, 2024

Van Dijk is quietly having an all timer season but it’s the norm for him so it’s not spoken about enough

— ? (@TheImmortalKop) October 2, 2024

Van Dijk was not called into desperate interventions, but he was consistently where he needed to be throughout – as he has been all season so far – and from anyone watching on, he was a level above the rest.

A yellow card was his only blemish, and that was simply for being bigger and stronger than his opponent!

The 33-year-old is quietly performing at a world-class level, not that it is news to Liverpool supporters, but perhaps he will again receive the recognition he deserves from outside Anfield’s four walls.

With the third-most minutes for the Reds to date (720) and effortless classy displays like this one, he is proving age should not be a determining factor in contract talks.

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