Arne Slot Reveals Why He Celebrated So Emotionally After Van Dijk's Late Winner Against West Ham

Liverpool are now just two wins away from becoming Premier League champions after a thrilling 2-1 win over West Ham at Anfield. The match was full of emotions especially in the final minutes, as captain Virgil van Dijk scored the winning goal in the 89th minute.

The game looked like it was heading for a draw after West Ham equalised late but Van Dijk stepped up with a powerful header to secure all three points. The crowd at Anfield went wild, and manager Arne Slot couldn’t hide his joy, celebrating with fist pumps in front of the fans.

Arne Slot admitted he felt more relief than anything when the final whistle blew.

“It was a big relief. Alisson made sure West Ham didn’t score earlier. They had many chances. But after they scored the equaliser, we started pressing again, and the fans got loud. That helped us a lot,” Slot said.

This win was Slot’s 36th in his first 50 games as Liverpool manager—an even better record than club legends Joe Fagan and Sir Kenny Dalglish, who each had 29.

Mohamed Salah who just signed a new contract didn’t score in the game but he played a key role in Liverpool’s first goal. He passed the ball to Luis Diaz who scored in the 18th minute. That assist was Salah’s 18th this season, adding to his 27 goals making 45 goal contributions in total the most ever in a 38-game Premier League season.

Salah gave West Ham’s young defender Ollie Scales, just 19 years old, a tough time before Scales was taken off just before the hour mark.

West Ham didn’t give up. In the second half they pushed hard and were finally rewarded when a clearance from Van Dijk bounced off Andy Robertson and into the Liverpool net. The own goal made it 1-1 and gave West Ham hope.

But just four minutes later, Van Dijk made up for it with a strong header from a corner kick, sending Anfield into celebration and giving Liverpool all three points.

While Van Dijk scored the winning goal goalkeeper Alisson was just as important. He made several big saves to stop West Ham from scoring earlier in the game. Slot called it “probably his best game of the season.”

Even though they lost West Ham manager Graham Potter was happy with how his team played.

“This was probably our best performance since I arrived,” he said. “We defended well, attacked well, and showed real fight. Playing at Anfield is always tough, but we did well overall.”

Potter also praised young Ollie Scales for handling the challenge of playing against Salah.

“It was a good learning experience for him. He was up against one of the best players in the world,” he added.

With only two more wins needed, Liverpool are getting closer to lifting the Premier League trophy. Van Dijk is expected to sign a new two-year contract soon, and Salah is showing top form again. Alisson is also back to his best, and that gives the team a lot of confidence.

The atmosphere at Anfield is electric. The fans believe this could be the year they bring home their 20th league title.