Arne Slot said he missed having Diogo Jota as part of his squad after Liverpool opened their Premier League title defence with a win over Bournemouth.
The match was the Reds’ first since Jota was tragically killed in a car accident earlier this summer alongside his brother, Andre Silva.
Liverpool were unconvincing in the match. They led by two shortly after half-time, but Antoine Semenyo’s brace soon had the match level again. Federico Chiesa and Mohamed Salah then found the back of the net in the late stages to secure Liverpool’s win.
With the match level at two apiece, though, Slot said he wished he could have added Jota to the fray.
“Normally, when it was 2-2, I think you know which player I would have looked at at this moment in time,” he told Sky Sports at full-time.
“I would have loved to bring Diogo Jota in, but I couldn’t for terrible reasons.
“But now the fans and the players that were still there did what he did so many times in the past.”
The match was preceded by fresh tributes to the late striker, featuring a crowd mosaic and a minute’s silence.
Slot continued, saying Bournemouth’s tempo and fitness left him concerned that Liverpool would not be able to secure the result.
“When we played [Bournemouth] here last season, we were 3-0 up and they just kept on going.
“They were in running stats very high. You can see again today how fit this team we faced was. They never gave up. The pace they have, the tempo, they sprinted all the way.
“But they faced a team that is really fit as well. We have lost many players this summer, but we did not lose our mentality.”
Liverpool return to action next weekend, visiting Newcastle.
