Ahead of their English Premier League tie vs Aston Villa, Liverpool boss Arne Slot demanded his team get fitter in order to solve their dilemma of dropping points in away games — an issue that has left them in fourth place (59 points in 26 games), yet to seal a Champions League spot.

The Reds have won just seven of their 18 away matches, suffering defeat in eight of them. “We’ve dropped points in away games against teams we usually don’t drop points against. The challenge is to be fitter and more ready to play games every two or three days,” said the Dutch manager.