Liverpool just saw new side to Arne Slot as Luis Diaz change speaks volumes

A goal down at the break, it was a surprise to most people that Arne Slot didn't make a change aside from swapping the injured Ibrahima Konate for Joe Gomez. But it wasn't too long until Liverpool did switch things up.

With around half an hour to play, Luis Diaz and Curtis Jones were introduced in place of the ineffective Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai. Slot opted for an extra attacker and essentially moved to a 4-4-2 system. Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah, the goalscorers, played wide, with Diaz and Darwin Nunez down the middle.

Liverpool has only been behind for 144 minutes so far under Slot. Eighteen of those were in the 1-0 home defeat to Nottingham Forest in which the Reds could not find a breakthrough and 55 came this weekend against Brighton.

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But when Slot showed that he needed to find a solution and unlock a way for Liverpool to win, that is exactly what he provided. The Diaz and Jones change proved inspired and it was all shown in one move for the winning goal.

As Liverpool played some brilliantly flowing soccer, Diaz, then Jones, and then Salah were all involved. It was the Egyptian's sumptuous finish that found the back of the net but it was a winner made on the touchline.

Slot had seen that Liverpool needed more quality in the final third but few would have gone with Diaz effectively as a number 10. Gakpo stayed wide on the left and got the equalizer, while the Colombian was in the perfect spot to set up Salah for the winner.

Each element of the Liverpool attack — which could easily have been in different positions had Slot opted for something more conventional — played its part in ensuring the opportunity to take advantage of Arsenal and Manchester City slip-ups wasn't missed. the Reds boss was bold and it paid off.

Liverpool has so far not really needed to see what Slot would be like under the pressure of needing to find two goals in half an hour to win a game, and while he might not admit to it, he was almost certainly aware of the results elsewhere involving the Reds' title rivals. What the win over Brighton highlighted, though, was his tactical acumen.

With Diaz heavily involved as soon as he entered the pitch and deployed in a new position to great effect, Liverpool got its job done and avoided disappointment. Top of the Premier League table, Slot won't want to be put in that position too often — but he has now shown another side to his coaching that will inevitably be needed at some point again.