Liverpool manager Arne Slot has been compared to the “ideal son-in-law with the unexpected angry temper” following his sending-off against Everton.
The Reds are enjoying a stellar season, with their 2-1 victory over Wolves on Sunday helping them maintain a seven-point lead over second-placed Arsenal in the Premier League.
The league leaders ended a two-match winless streak, which included a 1-0 defeat to Championship strugglers Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup and a draw in the Merseyside Derby against Everton earlier in the week.
Slot was sent off by referee Michael Oliver after the final whistle in the match against Everton, with the Dutchman visibly furious after a late James Tarkowski goal secured a point for the Toffees at Goodison Park on Wednesday.
Journalist Leon ten Voorde suggested that Slot’s composed demeanor slipped during the clash with their Merseyside rivals, revealing a side of the Liverpool boss that Dutch fans “had discovered before.”
Ten Voorde wrote in Algemeen Dagblad: “Arne Slot is the ideal son-in-law with the angry temper.
“It was about time too, after almost a year of walking the tightrope in the ideal world. On Wednesday – after some setbacks – England finally got to know the other side of Arne Slot from Bergentheim. The ideal son-in-law with the unexpected angry temper.
“It is all too good to be true: too slick, too smooth, too much of a pleaser, too charming, too clever and too cunning and maybe just too good. A great coach of a more than great club.
“After all the adulation and adulation, things are now a little bit disappointing. And then the ideal son-in-law turns into an unruly spoilt brat, unaccustomed to dealing with adversity.
“Suddenly, they saw a side of the manager in England that we in the Netherlands had discovered before, it is a character trait that does not make him equally popular with all his colleagues. A narrative Slot whines and whines to the fourth man, he manipulates and postures.
“Well, with this referee I would not have made it to the dressing room without a card either, but Slot threw off his mask with just a little too much misbehaving. It was as if a secret camera exposed everything in the bedroom of the incorruptible king.
“Slot was briefly himself again on Wednesday, a flesh-and-blood human being. Thankfully, because it was all getting just a little too perfect.”
Liverpool also endured a tense finish in their win over Wolves, and Slot admitted there “was relief” after securing the three points.
Slot told a post-match press conference: “Yeah, clearly it was relief at the end, especially after what happened on Wednesday.
“Those last eight minutes, and especially the last minute where we conceded a goal, you are so frustrated because you know that moment can also have [an] impact for the next game or for the next games that are coming up.
“And I think you saw today after us conceding the 2-1 that maybe for the first time this season we were a bit, ‘Ooh…’ after conceding in the last minute against Everton. I think that was in our heads a bit and that’s also why we, as a team, were so furious on Wednesday.”
