Slot needed a performance - and Liverpool delivered one
Slot needed a performance for the sake of his own future and the fan reaction on Sunday was enough to tell the Liverpool players that their supporters were owed a display too. In their programme notes, both Slot and skipper Virgil van Dijk made a point of emphasising the atmosphere and the manager's added energy on the touchline was noticeable. "I know Liverpool have stuttered at times this season but the performance that they got tonight was so dominant and impressive," said ex-England goalkeeper Paul Robinson on BBC Radio 5 Live.
"The fans will be delighted but wondering why they can't be consistent. Why can't they do that all the time? They looked so on it tonight, so sharp and quick.
Mohamed Salah looked back on it tonight. Everything just seemed to click. "That Liverpool performance in the second half was one of the best this season.
Galatasaray were pretty passive tonight but Liverpool didn't let them back into the game. " On the weekend, Dominik Szoboszlai had complained about fans leaving early and it would be a stretch to say the ground was full when the final whistle was blown to put an end to Galatasaray's misery. But, this time, the fans had roared Liverpool on and there can be some mitigation for leaving early on a midweek night, with the game settled.
"We needed that. I think today we showed the right direction and what we want to show everybody and each other," Szoboszlai told TNT Sports. "It starts with us and I know the fans can be unhappy with us but I think it's a good step for us.