Arne Slot talked up his current Liverpool right-back Conor Bradley after the win over Real Madrid and also had words of comfort for his former one
01:00, 05 Nov 2025Updated 01:14, 05 Nov 2025
Vinicius Junior is left on the floor after a challenge by Conor Bradley during the Champions League match between Liverpool and Real Madrid at Anfield(Image: Shaun Brooks – CameraSport via Getty Images)
Arne Slot hailed Conor Bradley for his performance against Vinicius Junior as Liverpool beat Real Madrid 1-0 at Anfield in the Champions League. Bradley was outstanding on the night at right-back.
The Northern Ireland international helped keep Brazil star Vinicius quiet for long periods in a game that saw Alexis Mac Allister win it with a second-half header.
Conor Bradley has now played back-to-back 90 minutes for the Reds while they have kept clean sheets in home victories against Aston Villa and Real Madrid.
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And Slot was full of praise for the 22-year-old and how he dealt with Vincius in particular.
“Let’s be clear, we had a very bad run of form in terms of results,” the Liverpool head coach said.
“No excuse in the world can make up for us losing so many games but we had to play a lot of games in a small amount of time, with hardly any rest in between when we played a team who had a lot of rest.
“Tonight we played against a team that played on Saturday as well, so it is two days rest and it is helpful to play a home game because we have played six of eight away from home.
“So that gives you a bit of an extra edge if you are a little bit tired.
“Conor was outstanding, last season he was outstanding against Real Madrid and had to go off after 80 minutes because of an injury.
“And now, here three days after he played 90 minutes against Villa, he was against Vinicius for 90 minutes of incredible intensity. I told the players before the game, they have 26 goals in La Liga and Mbappe and Vinicius have 24 goal contributions together.
“So if you want any chance of winning the game, you should defend your set-pieces well, teams can score but great individuals can score goals as well and these two definitely can.
“Conor defended very well against Vinicius.”
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Slot rejected that the Anfield atmosphere picked up a notch by the second-half introduction of former defender Trent Alexander-Arnold, who was roundly booed following his move to los Blancos in the summer.
Slot added: “I was impressed by the atmosphere throughout the full 90 minutes and even before the game already and not only when Trent was on.
“I spoke to Trent only shortly afterwards, I gave him a hug, I don’t know exactly what I said but probably not a lot.
“Every time I see him, I will give him a hug because he has been very special to me as a player and as a human being.”