Paris Saint-Germain defeated Liverpool 2-0 this Wednesday at the Parc des Princes in the first leg of their 2025-2026 Champions League quarter-final (second leg on April 14). Following the victory, Reds manager Arne Slot spoke to CBS Sports Golazo.
Slot: “I saw what I expected from my players.”
What are your thoughts on the match?
Of course, we don’t want to lose, especially not by two goals. But when you look at the game, we were fortunate to only lose 2-0. Last year, PSG were also the better team. But I saw what I expected from my players, in terms of fighting spirit. It’s very difficult to face this machine created by Luis Enrique.
What are your words for the players, given that you criticized them for a lack of effort against Manchester City?
We conceded goals against City that stemmed from a lack of effort. If you don’t put in that effort, these teams can score a lot of goals. Tonight, even though there were chances, at least we were present. But it was also clear that the high pressing allowed PSG to break us down.
Slot: “We showed it last year and we’re going to try to do it again.”
Liverpool didn’t get a shot on target, how do you change that?
I’m basing this on last year, with the comeback going in our favor. Anfield makes a big difference. We’ll have to; we need a very different performance. We showed it last year and we’re going to try to do it again.
How are you? There’s pressure on you.
It’s normal in this profession; there are good times and bad times. It’s part of being a coach. We had a very difficult 20 minutes against City, and we had a very tough 90 minutes tonight. But we’re still in the competition and we hope to be after the second leg.
