Arne Slot reveals the Liverpool star who has surprised him the most is on ‘another level’

Liverpool boss Arne Slot has been surprised by the quality of his side this season, singling out one player in isolation.
The former Feyenoord manager couldn’t have wished for a better start to life on Merseyside, especially after following one of the club’s greatest ever and most adored managers Jurgen Klopp.
Top of both the Premier League and Champions League tables makes for great reading and wins over Bayer Leverkusen, Real Madrid and Manchester City have staked their claim for being the best team in Europe so far this season.
While several teams are clamouring to win in their final European group game, Liverpool are already qualified and the match against PSV Eindhoven gives them a chance to rest key players ahead of a huge clash with Bournemouth on the weekend.
No wonder the Dutchman was in a relaxed mood in the build-up to their next game, as he opened up on his time at Liverpool so far and who has impressed him.
Speaking to Gary Lineker in an exclusive interview with BBC Sport, Slot revealed how Virgil van Dijk had surprised him this season with his quality, claiming that his ball-playing ability is on ‘another level’.
“Everybody here in England would tell you that Virgil van Dijk is the best defender in the world,” said Slot.
“In Holland, he got a bit more criticism than he gets over here in England. I was, in a very positive way, surprised how good he was on the ball and how he could play football through the lines.
“From the first day I was like ‘wow, this is definitely another level that I’m used to’. But people in England were used to this.”
The 33-year-old remains set to be out of contract come June and while talks have taken place, no deal has been officially confirmed yet which will worry fans as the months continue to pass by.
He could agree a pre-contract with any club in the world right now ahead of a summer switch but the lack of viable options may ensure he remains at Anfield past this season.
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Slot on Liverpool’s brilliant season
He was also asked about their brilliant start and he expressed that it was going even better than he had imagined – but he also commented on how he wants the team to improve in the long-term, teasing transfers in the summer.
“You don’t think after 20 games we will have that many points and I wasn’t expecting us to be top with the margin we have,” he added.
“It’s always nice to be up there, but nobody would have expected this. I’m the last person who would have expected [reigning champions Manchester] City to have such a bad run.
He said: “Liverpool should always be competing for a league title, we should always be competing for the Champions League. I’m hoping I will be able to keep the club at that level.
“I know people sometimes question this because they haven’t seen us doing a lot in the transfer market in the summer and now in the winter as well. There’s a reason for that – because we’re happy with the squad.
“But I do know we’re definitely working on strengthening in the summer.”