Slot’s Liverpool look an awful lot like Klopp’s Liverpool, and that’s a pretty solid strategy

We are in danger of getting a bit carried away by Arne Slot’s Liverpool.

They’ve kind of stumbled upon it a little bit because they definitely didn’t plan to reach the final week of August without signing anyone at all, but we’re coming round to the idea that it might actually be helping them in their transition from the heavy metal chaos of Jurgen Klopp’s football to Arne Slot’s more measured approach.

Because on the evidence of two games – admittedly two games against non-elite opposition in Premier League terms – this is already a team that operates as a neat and effective combination of the two.

And if Slot has any sense – and clearly this is a man who has plenty – he’ll have no intention of ripping up what Klopp achieved here and starting again. It’s a rare situation for a manager at a big club, really; to come into a club as the new boss but find a dressing room and a squad that’s contented and works.

Almost by definition, a new manager at a big club finds himself initially facing the task of putting out fires and patching up cracks. There’s none of that at Liverpool.

But nor is he just trying to be another Klopp. There is a clear effort for more patience in possession and more methodical build-up, but that makes the lightning counter-attacks we all remember from the Klopp days all the more potent when they occur, as they did for Luis Diaz’s 13th-minute opener in this all-too-easy 2-0 win over Brentford, in which he lashed the ball into the back of the net mere seconds after the visitors had a corner.

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We’re not saying Slot’s definitely going to make Liverpool even better than Klopp did. Just that it’s already clear it’s going to be fascinating to watch exactly how he goes about attempting it. There are some clear Klopp elements Slot is very correctly treating as unbroken and in no need of fixing. Trent Alexander-Arnold is, if anything, playing as an even more loosely-defined right-back here than he did under the previous manager.

Slot, smart cookie that he is, has told Mo Salah to go out and be brilliant. It’s a tactic Klopp used frequently and Slot is wise to retain it. Whimsy aside, it already seems ludicrous to even imagine Liverpool this season without Salah, but you don’t have to go all that very far back to find a time when plenty thought he would be on his way to Saudi Arabia when Klopp left.

Instead he’s more important than ever, scoring goals and making chances and running things rather wonderfully. The only unconvincing thing about Salah’s start to life under Slot is that new hairline.

One change that can’t help but catch the eye is the far greater responsibility being handed to Ryan Gravenberch this season. He was excellent again here in an all-action and busy performance at both ends of the pitch.

But even here we can’t truly say for sure that Slot is departing wildly from Klopp’s vision. Gravenberch had a brilliant start to his career and then a significant stall before rocking up at Liverpool. It would make sense if the plan was to bed him in over the course of his first season before really entrusting him with that energetic midfield role they need from him.

It probably would be a good idea to get a couple more bodies through the door before the deadline just to avoid anything going stale. And we’ll know far more about where Liverpool stand in all regards after next week’s clash with Manchester United.

But after two very controlled 2-0 wins to start the season, results and performances that hint at plenty more to come, it’s so easy to see how this can be maintained and built upon.

The freshness any squad needs is there already from the manager, who is leaning heavily on the things that worked best for Klopp’s team while slowly but surely making his own tweaks and changes around the edges.

It will be a long time before this looks like it’s really Slot’s team, but again: in this particular job at this particular time that is a very sensible part of the plan. Nothing about Liverpool required dramatic renovation or rebuild.

Klopp knew he’d left his successor a squad that could continue to grow and improve. It was one of the reasons he was willing to accept it was time to move on. He was never going to be happy leaving Liverpool in a mess, and he didn’t.

And so far the most sensible and prudent thing Slot has done – something that from the outside looks so obvious but is not something every manager would have done in his position – is acknowledge that and stick with what works well.

It would still be a major shock to see Liverpool go fully toe-to-toe with City and Arsenal in a season-long fight, but it already looks like it will be equally surprising to see anyone else finish ahead of them.

Given the fears/hopes (delete as applicable according to club affiliation) about how Liverpool might drift back into the pack after losing such an inspirational manager, it’s been a highly satisfactory start.