Arne Slot says it is “hard to hear” fans calling his Liverpool side dull and boring and while he does not “completely disagree” he insists he wants to play “attractive football”.
Liverpool are unbeaten in nine games but have come under criticism in recent weeks for lacklustre performances, with draws against Leeds and Fulham after beating Wolves 2-1 at Anfield.
They visit league leaders Arsenal on Thursday (20:00 GMT) and are 14 points adrift of the Gunners in fourth place.
Top scorer Hugo Ekitike is a major doubt with a hamstring injury, though a decision on the Frenchman will be made after training.
When asked about his team being “dull and boring”, Slot replied: “I find it really hard to hear (those words) but it’s not that I completely disagree.
“I would use different words, take certain things into account.
“I want to win as many trophies as I can but I think I’m also known for the fact that my teams always try to play attacking football and can only say that we are trying to do so.”
He added: “We are struggling to create a lot of chances. But as I’ve said many times, we are not the only team that struggles to create a lot of chances. I don’t think the number we create is that different to some other teams that are doing really well in the league.”
In terms of big chances created – a situation where a player should reasonably be expected to score, according to Opta statistics – Liverpool have created 53 (but scored 32 goals) in the Premier League this season, which puts them seventh alongside Newcastle (28 goals). Manchester City and Arsenal lead the way with 65 (44 goals) and 62 (40 goals) respectively.
“But I don’t like to hear this of course,” added Slot.
“One thing I’d like is us winning a lot of games but also us playing an attractive style of football which we have also done this season.
“We have to find a way against teams [who play] in not an attractive way, which is maybe even smart for them to do. We have to find answers to that and we haven’t found enough yet but we are working every single day to improve that.”
