Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson insists Arne Slot’s team aren’t as good one ‘special’ Jurgen Klopp side… and insists his Reds team-mates are focused on ‘creating their own history’

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker says this current Reds team is not yet a replacement for the all-conquering team under Jurgen Klopp that won the Champions League and the Premier League.

Arne Slot is doing an excellent job at Anfield and his team go to West Ham on Sunday with a six-point lead over second-placed Arsenal in the title race with a game in hand. But one of the remaining stars from the previous title winners, Alisson, believes they still have points to prove.

Asked if this season compares to 2019/20, when they won their first league title in three decades, Brazil’s No 1 said: ‘I don’t think it’s too similar, they’re two different teams. A few players still play in the team, but we have a slightly different style now.

‘More ball possession, before it was really easy: a lot of transitions, a lot of intensity. That team was very special, we achieved great things, it was the first Premier League title for this club in a long time. We also won the Champions League together.

‘I don’t think there is a comparison between the two situations. What makes me happy is to see that in this group of players we have the quality to do something special. The most important thing is that the dedication needed to win something is there, and that the passion and desire are there.

“We’re hungry and we want to win every game that’s in front of us and that we have left in front of us, and that’s all we’re focusing on at the moment. I believe we don’t need to compare ourselves to the teams of the past, we need to create our own history.

Alisson was part of the Liverpool squad that won the Premier League title in 2019/20

Alison also won the Champions League with Liverpool during the 2018/19 season

‘This season this group has to write its own history. With the players who came in, they brought a lot of quality, and what we do, what we can do, we are not going to erase the things that we have done in the past that were very special and will always remain in history. of this club.’

The core of the team remains relatively untouched, with Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andy Robertson, Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah still present and playing most weeks. But Liverpool have freshened up in midfield and in attack.

However, 32-year-old Alisson is happy with the way Slot and Co have revitalized the team, adding: ‘I think when Arne came to the club, everyone thought it would be tough work for him to be a to replace manager like Jurgen. .

‘But he shows his qualities and brings us a lot of good things. I think it’s not just one key, but many things that help us achieve our goals. I want to emphasize the commitment of this team, of the players, to do what the manager asks.

‘Also to train hard every day and to have the desire to improve, to be a better team and the desire to win big things for this club. So that will always remain an important point for a team that wants to win.’

Given his years at the club, Alisson also believes that the previous title winners – who have also suffered bad seasons – can use their good and bad experiences to help them along in this quest for glory.

“We have some players who have been here long enough, who have experienced the highest peak of perhaps the Jurgen Klopp era – and also the lowest,” he said. ‘So you can use all these kinds of things as an energy boost.

Alisson stated that he was impressed by the impact Slot has made since taking charge

Liverpool enjoyed enormous success under Klopp, who left at the end of last season

‘We know that in the future we will remember more of the good moments you had together in football. Winning isn’t everything, of course, but it’s a big part of football, so I want to remember this team as a winning team.

‘All the experiences we have, it’s good to think about them. They will teach you the good and the bad things, the good and the bad moments. I think the bad moments will teach a lot. So yes, we can learn a lot of lessons from last season.’