Arne Slot Defends Three Minutes of Added Time in Merseyside Derby,Criticizes Opponent Time-Wasting
Liverpool manager arne Slot has dismissed suggestions of unfair officiating regarding added timeโฃ inโ Saturday’sโ 2-0 victory over Everton in the 247th Merseyside derby,asserting โthe three minutes added were “wholly correct” due โtoo the limited stoppages in play.
Slot explained the โฃminimal added time stemmed from a lackโค of notable interruptions, stating, “There was โขno time-wasting becauseโ that’s not what we do – unfortunately,โ I have to say, sometimes – and there was noโ treatment of injuries, โone โgoal scored.” He further contrasted thisโ with gamesโค where his team chases a result, โnoting, “Where in many other games when we needโฃ a goal,โ there’s a lot, a lot, a lot of time-wasting going on, I can tell you.”
Theโข debate โขarose โas โฃLiverpool has recently securedโ several late โฃwinners, including a 3-2 victory against โNewcastle decidedโ by Rio Ngumoha’s โgoal in the 10thโ minute of stoppage time. However,โ data reveals the ballโฃ was onyl in play for 40.8 percent of that match – the lowest percentage in a Premier League game since February 2010, according to Opta.
Slot clarified that Liverpool was โคactively seeking to extend their lead against Everton, while โขEverton aimed to โคequalize, โleading โคtoโข a different dynamic than matches whereโ his teamโ is desperately trying to score. The standardโฃ allowance โฃfor addedโฃ time in a routine Premier League fixture remains up to three minutes.