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Liverpool head coach Arne Slot continued to play down the significance of their place at the top of the Premier League despite it being strengthened by their 3-1 win over Leicester.<\/p>\n
Chelsea\u2019s surprise defeat by Fulham meant victory over the Foxes stretched their lead to seven points, with a match in hand and the halfway point of the campaign fast approaching.<\/p>\n
But Slot is maintaining his level-headed approach despite the clamour growing around their chances of adding another title to the one won in 2020.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you are in this game for a long time like the players and I am then 20 games before the end you don\u2019t look at it as there are so many challenges ahead of you,\u201d he said after Cody Gakpo, Curtis Jones and Mohamed Salah scored to turn around an early deficit following Jordan Ayew\u2019s strike.<\/p>\n
\u201cInjuries and a bit of bad luck can happen to any team, it is far too early to be already celebrating \u2013 but it is nice for us to be where we are.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think there was any easy win for us in any of these games; it could have been an easy win against Tottenham but we conceded two and it was then 5-2 \u2013 that tells you how difficult it is to win even when you have all your players available.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is why we have to take it one game at a time. The league table is something of course we are aware of but we always understand how many games there are to go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leicester boss Ruud van Nistelrooy felt his side held their own until Salah scored in the 82nd minute.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we were in the contest for a result for a long time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThree-one was the turning point in the sense the game was done there to get a result.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the 60th minute I remember a chanced for Daka to score the equaliser so we were in the game to get a surprising result.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did well, we did what we could: a good start with the goal but if you speak of a turning point, 3-1 with Salah, the game was done.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Nistelrooy left goalkeeper Danny Ward out of the squad after he struggled in the defeat to Wolves and was jeered by his own fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe change in goal was one to make and the conversation with Wardy was impressive, the way he was thinking of the team and the club,\u201d added the Dutchman.<\/p>\n
\u201cI insisted on a conversation and of course it is a private conversation but what I want to share is the person and the professional he is.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was impressed with that and his willingness for the team and the club to do well.<\/p>\n
\u201cReally tough what happened for him. We are professionals but human beings as well, when frustration is being directed towards one person that is difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sign up to Miguel Delaney\u2019s Reading the Game newsletter sent straight to your inbox for freeSign up to Miguel\u2019s Delaney\u2019s free weekly newsletter Sign up to Miguel\u2019s Delaney\u2019s free weekly newsletter I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our\u00a0privacy policy Liverpool head coach Arne Slot continued to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3973,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n