Jarell Quansach believes Liverpool’s pre-season friendlies were vital to getting used to life under new manager Arne Slott. The Dutchman will take charge of his first competitive game when the Reds take on Ipswich this weekend. Kwansa admits the players are still not up to speed as they come to terms with the new tactics, but is confident they can “attack the season”.
Jarell Quansach admits Liverpool are still getting used to their new style of play under new manager Arne Slott, but is confident they can hit the ground running.
The Reds kick off their Premier League campaign on Saturday lunchtime against newly promoted Ipswich, live on TNT Sports and Discovery+.
The game will be Slott’s first competitive match in charge, following his arrival at Anfield this summer to replace Jurgen Klopp.
After beating Sevilla 4-1 in a friendly on Sunday, the Kwanza centre-back believes Liverpool have shown they are already settling in for the Dutchman.
“It won’t click right away,” he told the club’s official website. “There are a lot of new ideas that we have to get used to.”
“Obviously a lot of the guys played for a long time under the last manager so there’s a lot of adjustment.
“But it will come slowly but surely.” There is still a lot of work to do on the training ground and we will continue to do so.
“That’s what the pre-season is for: getting your performance up, getting fit.” I think everyone is feeling pretty sharp right now and we’re ready to attack the season.
“I think the style of play that the manager likes to play is very attractive, we can score some amazing goals.” And we hope it will get better and better. That’s what we strive for.”
Klopp spent almost nine years at Anfield before leaving at the end of the 2023/24 season.
He gave Quans his Liverpool debut in the 2-1 win over Newcastle last August, and the defender has quickly become an important cog in the Reds’ back line.
Indeed, his form has been so strong that he was part of Gareth Southgate’s provisional 33-man squad for this summer’s European Championships.
That tournament and the Copa America disrupted preparations for the upcoming campaign, as many players have only just returned for pre-season.
That, Kwans says, is not ideal for a team that kept just two clean sheets in their last 16 games last season.
“Obviously the unit is still coming together and we haven’t had a lot of minutes together,” he continued. “We’re still adjusting to a different style of play and things like that. I think there will be clean sheets and I think we have to prioritize that this season.
“There were too many games last season where we conceded cheap goals and we can’t really get it going, that’s not what you need when you’re fighting for titles.
“Laying the foundations and keeping clean sheets is how you win leagues.”