During the joyous post-match scenes, Slot – joined by members of his coaching team – celebrated by producing some Jürgen Klopp-esque fist-pumps towards the Kop.
“I always felt that the fans were waiting for a moment like this and I always thought, ‘Don’t do it too early, wait for the final moment when we won it and then it could be a nice interaction with the fans,’” he recalled.
“Because this is what Jürgen of course always did. I don’t want to copy Jürgen during the season, but I thought this is a nice moment to do this. And I didn’t do it by myself, my staff were there as well and I think it was a special moment for all four of us.”
The moment felt natural thanks to the fact Slot’s bond with the Reds’ fan base has strengthened throughout the season.
“Yeah, yeah, the team [has created a connection too],” he added.
“But I think if I measured it by the amount of times that they sing my name then I think it’s fair to say that they’re not unhappy with me! And I felt from the start, from the people here in Liverpool and the people here in this building [the AXA Training Centre], I felt so welcome.
“I think Jürgen was a big help in this probably as well for what he did in his last game. But from the first time I arrived here and the first time I arrived at Anfield, I immediately felt that everyone was positive.
“Everybody gave me a warm welcome and they backed the team. They helped the team as they’ve done in their complete history. But they kept doing this when I was the manager as well, which was helpful.
“So yeah, I felt very welcome by everyone from the start until now and hopefully this can continue for a long period of time.”
Indeed, the supporters’ love for the boss has been showcased proudly with the advent of a new song in his honour.
