Arne Slot believes Club World Cup could hand Liverpool title advantage next season

Arne Slot is convinced that Liverpool could gain a significant advantage in their bid to retain the Premier League title next season due to the Club World Cup.

Both Manchester City and Chelsea have qualified for the newly formatted FIFA tournament, which will be held over a month in the United States, starting in mid-June.

While both clubs are set to earn at least £50million each for their participation in the 32-team event, the Liverpool manager is concerned that the competition could take a toll on the physical well-being of players under Pep Guardiola and Enzo Maresca.

Slot said: “We all have our opinion – and I think most people who work in football have the same opinion as me that this is maybe a tournament too far. When it’s being played we will probably all feel we would love to be there because it’s a great occasion.

“Maybe the best time to answer the question is after the tournament. But, at this moment, I would say eight out of 10 people who work in this business don’t feel it really necessary to have another tournament for players who have already had such a long season. In fact, maybe it’s 10 out of 10.”

Slot remains energised by the scenes he witnessed last Sunday, but it didn’t take long for the Dutchman to refocus on the task at hand.

His message to the rest of the Premier League is clear – Liverpool will only continue to improve, with his first season at Anfield having culminated in the most coveted of prizes.

Slot added: “This feeling of happiness is still inside me, and I think everyone here is the same.

“But life does go on. It was my wife’s birthday on Monday, so we celebrated that. Then, the day after, I started to think about the programme for the next few weeks.

“On Wednesday, when we started training, we started to think about Chelsea. So, yes, I still feel happy – but I am back to normal. Normal things have to be done. That means things like shopping for groceries – but I went to the shop with a smile on my face!”