Liverpool supervisor Arne Slot disregarded recommendations his facet’s 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United within the EFL Cup last was the product of fatigue following their penalty shootout loss to Paris Saint-Germain within the Champions League.
The Reds have been favourites to say their first trophy underneath Slot, who has overseen an impressive first season in cost since taking up from Jurgen Klopp, with Liverpool 12 factors away from Arsenal on the high of the Premier League.
However they have been undone by an excellent efficiency from Newcastle, who took a 2-0 lead by way of objectives from Dan Burn and Alexander Isak earlier than Federico Chiesa pulled one again in stoppage time.
An underwhelming Liverpool show got here 5 days after they let slip a first-leg lead over PSG of their last-16 tie, a pulsating second leg finally going all the best way to penalties, wherein Gianluigi Donnarumma shone to ship the Ligue 1 leaders by way of.
Liverpool regarded bereft of vitality at Wembley, however Slot wouldn’t cite fatigue as an element, as an alternative pointing to a direct strategy from Newcastle that supervisor Eddie Howe admitted he had saved near his chest when the 2 sides met at Anfield final month as the principle motive for his workforce’s demise.
“Mentally is at all times tough to guage,” Slot advised reporters when requested if his facet have been drained.
“Have been we on Tuesday mentally or bodily drained? No, however this recreation had nothing to do with operating, this recreation had solely to do with enjoying duels.
“And there was no depth by way of operating on this recreation in any respect, we can’t even choose it if we have been drained bodily, sure or no, as a result of we couldn’t press them.
“You’ll be able to choose a workforce if they’re drained in the event that they press, however there was nothing to press as a result of they performed over our press.
“In the event that they bought a goal-kick or free-kick, each time they introduced it to our final line which led to lots of set items.
“So the sport was gradual and never intense, so it’s tough to guage, for me, if we have been bodily prepared. Mentally, that may be a tough one.
“If you happen to have a look at the consequence and the efficiency you would possibly really feel it [the PSG game] did one thing to us, however I favor to have a look at how the sport went, and this recreation went precisely how they needed it to be.
“A battle with lots of duels, and lots of duels by way of the air, and if we performed 10 instances a recreation of soccer by way of the air towards them they win in all probability 9 instances as they’re stronger within the air than us.”
Liverpool may have time to recover from the frustration of this week, with a world break permitting them the chance to regroup forward of the Merseyside derby with Everton on April 2.
On whether or not that break had come at a superb time for his workforce, Slot stated: “We’re one of many largest golf equipment on the planet, Liverpool. But it surely’s not for the primary time of their historical past, or within the final two seasons, that they’ve misplaced two video games in a row.
“That is a part of enjoying soccer, particularly if one in all them is if you face one of the best workforce in Europe in the intervening time, and the opposite one is going through Newcastle, which is a really sturdy workforce in England.
“I’d’ve liked to play subsequent week. However now the state of affairs is that they go to their nationwide groups, the place they’ve two extra video games once more. Then it’s in all probability one-and-a-half weeks earlier than we face Everton, which is once more a workforce we already confronted. We all know how tough that one was. Let’s see.”