Arne Slot breaks silence on Martin Zubimendi and gives Liverpool transfer update

Arne Slot has spoken for the first time since Martin Zubimendi rejected a move to Liverpool , and has insisted the Reds are still looking to strengthen their squad.

The new head coach was speaking for ahead of his first competitive game in charge, with Liverpool facing Ipswich in their opening Premier League game on Saturday. Slot though will be going into the match with no new signings.

The Reds looked to be on the verge of adding Zubimendi to their squad late last week, only for the midfielder to reject a move on Monday . Although there have been some signs of a possible revival , Slot appeared to rule that out on Friday.

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The Liverpool boss though insisted that sporting director Richard Hughes is still looking at ways to strengthen the squad this summer, with just two weeks left in the transfer window.

“I said many times already that I think our squad is really strong, and it’s not so easy to find players that can help us or can even strengthen the squad,” Slot said.

“Zubimendi was one of them, to be fair, but he decided not to come. We go forward with the ones we have, and those ones have done really well in pre-season.

“We’re in a good place, and like I’ve said many times before, in the background, Richard [Hughes] is trying to strengthen the squad as he can, but unfortunately Zubimendi decided not to come.

“He [Hughes] did every effort, he tried everything to bring him in, but if a player doesn’t want to come, it’s obvious then that he is not coming.”

Slot added: "If you don't strengthen you become weaker? I don't understand that. I truly believe you can improve on the training ground. That has happened a lot here in recent years.

"If the teams around do strengthen they can potentially become better. But I don't necessarily believe that if you bring in players, you become better. In general, every player in the team needs perspective on playing time. If you bring new players in, the energy in the group can go down.

"Richard and me are trying to strengthen the squad. If we think we have found someone, we will try to bring them in. Unfortunately the one that we thought could help us said no. But Richard is still trying to improve the team."