Arne Slot jokingly accuses reporter of ‘ruining my day’ after being hit by frightening PSG stat

Arne Slot jokingly accuses reporter of ‘ruining my day’ after being hit by frightening PSG stat

Arne Slot jokingly accused a reporter of ‘ruining’ his day after being informed of two daunting goalscoring statistics involving Paris Saint-Germain.

Liverpool face the task of trying to overcome a 2-0 deficit when they host PSG in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday night, and the Parisian club’s firepower has been boosted by Bradley Barcola’s return to their matchday squad for their visit to Anfield.

With Luis Enrique also able to call upon the likes of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue and Goncalo Ramos, the reigning European champions will bring some fearsome attacking power with them to Merseyside.

Slot baulks at PSG scoring statistics

During the pre-match press conference on Monday, one reporter asked Slot if Liverpool would realistically need more than two goals if they’re to advance to the semi-finals, pointing out that PSG have scored in 17 consecutive matches and have found the net in 41 of their 45 matches this season.

Cracking a smile upon hearing those stats, Slot jokingly replied (via Liverpool FC on YouTube): “Why did you have to tell me this? Why are you ruining my day?”

The Reds’ head coach added: “Of course we know that we need an exceptional performance to go through to the next round, but that’s completely normal if you’re facing the champions of Europe and you’re 2-0 down.

“To make people a bit more positive, we have been able to score once in a while more than two goals, but let’s first focus on the job at hand. That’s to start aggressively and make sure we can get back into the tie, and the best way of doing so is by scoring the first goal.”

(Photo by Franco Arland/Getty Images)

Liverpool will be hard pressed to keep out PSG

There’s a good chance that two goals won’t be enough for Liverpool tomorrow night, considering how difficult it is to keep a clean sheet against PSG, who’ve netted 106 goals in their 45 games this season, averaging 2.36 per match (Transfermarkt).

Their neighbours Paris FC remain the last team to prevent them from scoring (a 1-0 Coupe de France upset three months ago), and Enrique’s side have hit four goals or more in four Champions League matches in this campaign.

It’s going to take a hugely resolute defensive performance from the Reds to shut out the European champions at Anfield, and with Slot having no option but to go for victory, there’s a danger that we may be more susceptible to being picked off on the counterattack.

Opta’s statistical model gives Liverpool just a 14.2% chance of progressing, and while PSG will rightly be favourites to advance, an early goal for the home side could alter the narrative of the tie, especially with a raucous support behind them.

LFC have a huge mountain to climb, but all we ask is that they leave nothing behind them in terms of effort and ambition as they aim to produce yet another famous European night at Anfield.