Arne Slot felt Liverpool showed the desire and hunger of title-winners as they moved another step closer to Premier League glory with a 2-0 win over Newcastle.
Goals in each half from Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister at Anfield on Wednesday took the Reds 13 points clear at the top of the table.
The Merseysiders had looked nervy in games against Everton, Wolves and Aston Villa earlier this month but doubts seem to have been swept aside after confident wins over Manchester City and now the Magpies.

Manager Slot, who watched the game from the stands as he started a two-match touchline ban, said: “I think what impressed me most was the mental strength in both games because after Everton and Wolves, maybe after Villa a bit, people started to question us a bit.
“Normally when you get questions you see extra workrate, that is normal. But if you get a lot of compliments, eight out of 10 people get complacent. Only the ones that want to achieve something don’t, and that mentality of the two against 10 we saw tonight.
“They just found an extra gear to work even harder. We weren’t perfect but the mentality was great again, as was the squad performance – not just the team performance.”
Liverpool’s advantage has increased from seven points in the past week, thanks also to the dropping of five points by closest challengers Arsenal in their last two games.
There''s breathing room for Liverpool as Alexis Mac Allister doubles the lead 🎯
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/IMKJjO0KII
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) February 26, 2025
Yet even with just 10 games remaining, Slot is not thinking about the title just yet and is already looking ahead to next week’s Champions League clash against Paris St Germain.
The Dutchman said: “I don’t know (about the title) because I don’t think that way.
“I think about PSG already and I watched them against City. I am impressed by the quality they have, they are on a similar run as we are, having hardly lost any games for a long time.
“That is my main focus. I’ll forget about the Premier League and the table for now, until the moment we’ve played PSG. Then I’ll think about the Premier League again and Southampton.”

The defeat meant Newcastle lost ground in the battle for a Champions League spot, leaving them sixth, three points behind fourth-placed Manchester City.
Despite that, manager Eddie Howe was pleased with the visitors’ performance.
He said: “I thought we played pretty well. What I don’t understand was the two goals – we should never have conceded from those situations. We had enough bodies back but didn’t mark the men.
“I’m really disappointed with that aspect of our play but in between the boxes I thought we were competitive. It wasn’t our best performance but we had our moments.”

Newcastle were without striker Alexander Isak due to a groin injury but Howe is confident he will be fit before the Carabao Cup final, also against Liverpool, next month.
He said: “We certainly hope so, we don’t think it will be a big problem for him.
“It goes without saying how important he is and I think you could see that. It was a late decision, around midday, he didn’t feel right in his groin.”
Chelsea climbed back into the Premier League’s top four as Enzo Fernandez’s header early in the second half earned a 1-0 derby win over Tottenham at Stamford Bridge.Enzo Maresca’s side were under pressure after limping into the international break playing football that had ceased to excite home fans, but they largely had the better of a disappointing Spurs team that failed to tak...

David Moyes believes James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid a red card for his reckless challenge on Alexis Mac Allister as Everton were beaten 1-0 by Liverpool on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal, which Moyes claimed should have been ruled out for offside, gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were...

Jack Grealish dedicated his goal to his late brother after scoring in Manchester City’s 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Leicester on Wednesday.The England international hit his first Premier League goal for 16 months, on his first start in the competition since last December, as City moved back into fourth with a comfortable success at the Etihad Stadium.It came on the 25th anniversary of...

David Moyes bemoaned an “offside” goal that gave Liverpool a 1-0 win over Everton – but admitted James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid an early red card on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were left unhappy with decisions from referee Sam Barr...

Eddie Howe hailed Sandro Tonali’s shooting power after seeing him cap a fine display with a stunning winner to edge Newcastle into the race for Champions League qualification.The 24-year-old Italy international brought an incident-packed encounter to a fitting conclusion with a 74th-minute piledriver which beat goalkeeper Mark Flekken from an improbable angle to hand the Magpies a precious 2...

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery believes Marcus Rashford is “progressively getting better” in all aspects of his game following his first Premier League goal for the club.The on-loan Manchester United forward set Villa on course for a comprehensive 3-0 win over fellow European hopefuls Brighton with a 51st-minute finish at the Amex Stadium.Rashford’s milestone strike came three days ...

Southampton boss Ivan Juric vowed to keep fighting as relegation moved sharply into focus after Crystal Palace denied them only a third Premier League win of the season.Substitute Matheus Franca’s stoppage-time header, to secure a 1-1 draw for the Eagles, means Saints will be down at the weekend if they lose at Tottenham and Wolves beat Ipswich.If relegation is confirmed on Sunday, Southampt...

Derby boss John Eustace insists his side are reaping the rewards for the hard work they have put in since he was appointed as manager after the Rams earned a 2-0 win over Preston to climb out of the Sky Bet Championship relegation zone.Derby came out firing after a lacklustre opening period and Craig Forsyth coolly slotted the hosts in front with his fourth goal of the season.The Rams doubled thei...

Notts County manager Stuart Maynard hailed a “massive” three points as his side comfortably saw off MK Dons at Meadow Lane to maintain their promotion challenge.Two stunning strikes from David McGoldrick and Will Jarvis from the edge of the box, either side of Nick Tsaroulla’s close-range effort, earned County a convincing 3-0 win.“I think every three points is massive now,...

Kieran McKenna was not getting too giddy dreaming of a miracle escape from relegation after Ipswich beat Bournemouth 2-1 to pick up their first Premier League win of 2025.Goals from Nathan Broadhead and top-scorer Liam Delap did the damage as Ipswich put a further dent in Bournemouth’s hopes of qualifying for Europe.McKenna, whose side are still nine points adrift of 17th-placed Wolves who t...



- 1 Hot WAG flaunts 'astonishing' washboard abs in bikini
- 2 Danny Rohl hails Sheffield Wednesday resilience in draw at Cardiff
- 3 Alfie May double sends Birmingham step closer to Championship
- 4 Marcus Rashford scores first Premier League goal for Villa in win at Brighton
- 5 Ryan Lowe and Conor Hourihane felt team deserved more as Wigan and Barnsley draw
- 6 Mat Sadler hails Taylor Allen set-piece skills after Walsall snatch draw
- 7 Chris Davies says Alfie May’s goal drought never concerned him
- 8 Football fan 'eats' raw pig's head in ultimate insult
- 9 Marcus Rashford still looking to improve after firing Villa into FA Cup semis
- 10 Chelsea prepare €70m for Barcelona defender