Crystal Palace Vs Liverpool, FA Community Shield: ‘Pressure Always On’ At Reds After Shootout Defeat, Says Slot

Arne Slot insisted that the pressure is always on at Liverpool after his side were beaten on penalties by Crystal Palace in Sunday's Community Shield. 

Liverpool were pegged back twice by Palace at Wembley to draw 2-2 in normal before Dean Henderson's heroics helped the Eagles to 3-2 win in the shoot-out.

Henderson repelled efforts from Alexis Mac Allister and Harvey Elliott after Mohamed Salah had blazed over, before Palace substitute Justin Devenny confirmed the victory with an emphatic spot-kick. 

Indeed, for a third consecutive season, the Community Shield has been won by the side that conceded first, with all of those teams winning via penalties. 

There were positives for the Premier League champions, though, with new signings Hugo Ekitike and Jeremie Frimpong scoring on their competitive debuts for the Reds. 

Ekitike's strike after three minutes and 48 seconds was the earliest goal in a Community Shield since Gary McAllister scored in the second minute of the 2001 showpiece.

The Frenchman's strike was teed up by fellow big-money arrival Florian Wirtz, who ended the contest with game-high totals for chances created (four). 

Liverpool's summer spending is edging towards the £300m mark, with Slot's team reportedly exploring moves for Alexander Isak and Palace's Marc Guehi. 

That has seen them tipped as favourites to retain their Premier League crown, winning the title in 28.2% of the Opta supercomputer's season simulations. 

"We are Liverpool, the pressure is always on," Slot told TNT Sports. "Even if we bring ten players in, or no players in, there is always pressure when you wear a Liverpool shirt."

Slot, while disappointed with the manner of the defeat, may be thankful his side lost the game given the Community Shield winners' record in the preceding campaign. 

Indeed, in four of the last six campaigns, the Community Shield runners-up have gone on to win the Premier League title in the same season. 

"It is disappointing, of course, if you go in front, and you are not able to win the game," Slot added.

"It was close and there were points where I thought we could win it, but it went to penalties, and they were better at that moment."

Palace were worthy of their win after an improved second-half display, ending with an expected goals (xG) total of 2.03 from their 14 shots to Liverpool's 1.08 from their 12 efforts. 

But the Reds had their chances to put the game to bed, with Ekitike missing a header early in the second half before Salah fired straight at Henderson late on.

It proved to be two defensive lapses that proved to be Liverpool's downfall, both of which came down to uncharacteristic errors by captain Virgil van Dijk. 

Van Dijk tripped Ismaila Sarr inside the box, which allowed Jean-Philippe Mateta to restore parity from the penalty spot before the Dutchman attempted to step out late from the back, allowing Sarr to level the game once more. 

"I have mixed feelings. If you look at our attacking play it looks better than last season [against Crystal Palace]," Slot said.

"On the other hand, we conceded two goals. We need to be better defensively. 

"I think if you want to compete to win the league, one of the main things is not conceding goals or chances, and we have to improve on that."