Arne Slot flips debate on its head with Liverpool claim rivals can't ignore

Arne Slot flips debate on its head with Liverpool claim rivals can't ignore - 'the only thing'

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot is no doubt that that the Premier League is the strongest division in world football

Arne Slot head coach of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Leicester City FC and Liverpool FC at The King Power Stadium (Image: 2025 Liverpool FC )

With the summer transfer window looming, Liverpool have been linked with a number of players from rival Premier League sides. The Reds are expected to be in the market for a new left-back, with AFC Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez one player of interest to the club.

Liverpool have also been linked with the likes of Fulham’s Antonee Robinson and Rayan Ait-Nouri of Wolverhampton Wanderers throughout the season as they weigh up possible signings.

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Of course, it’s not just at left-back. Tipped to move for a new striker too, the Reds are said to be strong admirers of Alexander Isak of Newcastle United, while they have been linked with Wolves star Matheus Cunha, Brighton & Hove Albion forward Joao Pedro and Ipswich Town’s Liam Delap too.

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Elsewhere, Bournemouth pair Dean Huijsen and Antoine Semenyo are also said to be on their radar, while they are also reported admirers of Everton centre-back Jarad Branthwaite.

They came close to signing Anthony Gordon from Newcastle last summer and earlier this week, they found themselves linked with Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers following an eye-catching campaign under Unai Emery.

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Liverpool have also been linked with the likes of Nottingham Forest pair Morgan Gibbs-White and Murillo and Crystal Palace’s Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi and Adam Wharton this season, as well as Mohammed Kudus in the past.

Arne Slot praised both the Ghanaian and Lucas Paqueta after the Reds’ win over West Ham United last weekend as he pointed out both are good enough to play for his side.

You wonder how many rival players have caught the Dutchman’s eye across his maiden campaign in England, and who exactly will be on his transfer wishlist come the summer.

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While Federico Chiesa was Liverpool’s only signing last summer, joining from Juventus, the Reds are expected to be more active this time around. And it would be no surprise if they did go shopping in the domestic market.

Of course, Liverpool are not going to be signing every single one of the aforementioned names this summer. But the fact that most are not dismissed out of hand is a sign of the Premier League’s strength and the quality right across the division.

And according to Slot, that is what sets it apart as the best league in the world - that every single Premier League club possesses players who would be good enough to play for the division’s elite sides.

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“I can give you every example you want, almost every game we've played,” he said when asked when he realised the difficulty of the Premier League. “Wolves at home, even Southampton at home, Plymouth away, which is not even at Premier League level.

“It's not only the Eredivisie [where small clubs can’t compete]. You see this in Spain, you see this in Italy. And I think multiple managers have said something about that.

“We've faced Fulham, but West Ham are 15th, 16th, I don't know what they are in the league at the moment. They have players that can play for us.

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“You don't see that in the Italian league, you don't see this in the Spanish league, you don't see this in the Eredivisie.

“You only see this in the Premier League, and that's why it's such a popular league. And that's why people pay so much money, broadcasters, and that's why we can bring so many good players in.”

Liverpool are storming to the Premier League title and could even win it this weekend, should Arsenal lose to Ipswich Town and they then beat Leicester City.

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If not, they are still on track to win the title before the end of the month with the Reds needing a maximum of six points from their remaining six games to be crowned champions.

Boasting a 13-point lead over second-placed Arsenal, critics have suggested that it has been a weak Premier League season, such is Liverpool’s dominance.

But Slot is not concerned by such opinions, pointing out you could say the same about the rest of the division when the Reds and Man City were challenging for the title when just shy of 100 points.

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“The nice part of a pundit’s job is that one thing happens and you can write about it two ways - positive or negative,” he said. “That is the beauty of the words you can use and the opinion of everyone.

“I can say something is great if I want to be positive and say it isn’t if I want to be negative. I can read different opinions on the same subjects. If everyone had the same opinion, it would be quite boring.

“Arsenal don’t have to win the Champions League because we are all sure that the Premier League is by far the best league and the most difficult league in the world. I don’t even think anyone can debate that.

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“Is it stronger than the season before or two or three seasons before? That’s up to everyone to debate. But during the week, when you see Aston Villa being so good against a team that together with (Man) City have unlimited amounts of money to spend.

“The team that is seventh in the Premier League were unfortunate not to go to extra-time like we did against PSG - but they deserved it. That could be an example of saying ‘yes, the Premier League is really good at the moment.’

“But others could come up with reasons why it isn’t as good as it was last season or the season before.

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“Amount of points could be an argument. City, a few years ago, got 100 points and then Liverpool had 99. Was that the best Premier League there ever was or was it too easy for Liverpool and Man City to win their games? You can look at things whichever way you want.

“I don’t care how other people look at it. The only thing I care about is the league table. I like to look at it at the moment - and I hope I can still like to look at it in one, two, three, four, five or six games.”

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