Liverpool’s Champions League defeat to Galatasaray has brought fresh scrutiny, with Arne Slot insisting constant stoppages meant we could hardly play our usual game.Referee decisions disrupted Liverpool rhythm(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)Speaking after the 1-0 defeat, the 47-year-old head coach admitted frustration at the way the contest unfolded.“In the second half, it became harder and harder for us to create. First of all, because they were fighting with all they had… and second of all because we hardly played in the second half.“By ‘hardly played’ I mean the ball was hardly in play,” he said, via liverpoolfc.com.French referee Clement Turpin awarded the hosts a controversial first-half penalty when Dominik Szoboszlai was judged to have fouled Baris Alper Yilmaz.That decision set the tone, with frequent interruptions disrupting any chance of Liverpool establishing momentum – especially in the second half.John Aldridge shared similar frustration with how stop-start the game was, claiming there should have been 20 minutes of added time.It was another blow for the Premier League champions, coming just days after defeat to Crystal Palace, and left questions about why our attacking unit are still struggling to settle.Squad rotation and injuries add to complications(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)The former Feyenoord boss also highlighted the impact of squad rotation, with players like Hugo Ekitike, Alexander Isak and Alexis Mac Allister all missing key parts of pre-season.That has forced the Dutchman into difficult decisions during a busy schedule.“I like my squad so much but we don’t have 25 or 26 players,” he explained. “If we end up with two, three or four injuries… things can become complicated.”Slot also revealed that Jeremie Frimpong was selected on the right flank due to his experience in that role at Bayer Leverkusen, and because Mo Salah has already played so many minutes this season.The pressure is now on us to respond at Stamford Bridge this weekend, with Giorgi Mamardashvili expected to start in place of the injured Alisson and doubts still surrounding Ekitike’s fitness.You can watch Slot’s full post-Galatasaray press conference via Empire of the Kop on YouTube:Join our channel of readers on WhatsApp to get the day’s top stories straight to your mobileThe post Arne Slot says referee left Liverpool unable to play in Istanbul appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.