It felt like the first day back at school after half-term as Arne Slot walked into his press conference sporting a fresh sun tan to accompany his usual jovial grin and demeanour.

This was his first public appearance for 16 days, a time which the Liverpool boss and his squad have spent resetting body and – perhaps more importantly – mind.

Given the weather on Merseyside this last fortnight, players and coaching team could have saved some money and stayed at home rather than jet off for a few days in the sun.

Chief among their gripes would have been the dismal display on show in the Carabao Cup final defeat by Newcastle. ‘Outworked,’ as Slot put it several times. Before that, there was the Champions League exit to Paris Saint-Germain. A bruising week to say the least.

Slot admitted he ‘needed’ the two-week break, though there is never truly an ‘off’ switch for a workaholic man like him who will have been mulling things over non-stop in his head before Liverpool returned to training on Saturday.

Liverpool are set to take on Everton in the Merseyside derby at Anfield on Wednesday evening

The Reds are hoping to bounce back from a brutal March where they crashed out of the Champions League to PSG, before they also lost to Newcastle in the Carabao Cup final

Slot’s side are still extremely well placed to win the Premier League title despite their recent dip

And now he is ready to attack the next nine games, the home straight, starting with the biggest of all: a Merseyside Derby at Anfield on Wednesday against city rivals Everton who just happen to be nine matches unbeaten under David Moyes.

Even with no jeopardy in the league table, this contest would be big. The fact that a league title and safety from relegation are on the line make it huge, and memories of an ill-tempered affair across Stanley Park two months ago ramps up the meaning to a seismic level.

‘Derby day is the best and worst day of the season,’ as one fan put it on Tuesday.

But Slot knows that Liverpool must play the game not the occasion after the Goodison Park vortex sucked them in last time. With the volume notched up, his side conceded a 98th-minute equaliser and, as the boss has since admitted, let emotions get the better of themselves.

On Wednesday night they must park both that and the bitter disappointment of the two games that came before this elongated and rare break in the fixture schedule.

‘There was a bit of noise about us losing to Paris Saint-Germain and Newcastle,’ he said. ‘I always try to be rational and try to judge the situation, in these situations I don’t think it has happened many times.

‘I was a bit more frustrated about the Carabao Cup final because for the first time, we deserved to lose a game. We were also outworked and that is not what I like.

‘This (international break) I liked the most, I needed the most as well. But there is no difference between back then and now. (Now) there is no room for going down a gear, you always have to be on top of your game.’

February’s Merseyside derby at Goodison Park was very feisty and Liverpool lost their cool

Slot admitted that his emotions got the better of him after James Tarkowski’s late equaliser

But they will have a challenge against David Moyes’ side, who are unbeaten in nine games

Slot’s squad largely reported back to their Kirkby base over the weekend. Some, like the injured Trent Alexander-Arnold, has not had a ‘break’ at all and instead been doing recovery work and has absolutely not been distracted by noise around a potential move to Real Madrid.

On Monday, the head coach spoke to the group all together and told them that it is unacceptable to be ‘outworked by a team’ as they were in the Carabao Cup final. With Everton being an industrious unit under Moyes, a similar performance tonight is not recommended.

‘I showed them the work-rate they have put in for so many games in a row,’ added the boss. ‘PSG was a great example of that – so maybe, maybe, maybe I made the biggest mistake by not rotating enough for Newcastle.

‘It is (about) emphasising what made us where we are now. For me, that is, apart from quality, an incredible work-rate every single game we played in the Premier League.’

Everton come into this game 17 points clear of the drop zone and, for a team so accustomed to losing when Sean Dyche was sacked, have now not fallen to defeat in the league since a bitterly cold night way back in early January.

It is a remarkable turnaround where Moyes has surprised everyone at the club and beyond – including himself – at just how quickly their fortunes have changed. They have gone from a team sleepwalking to relegation to one that should now have realistic top-half hopes next year.

All this without the first-choice striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin, their top assist-provider Dwight McNeil and ace-in-the-pack forward Iliman Ndiaye. They are just three headline names from an injury list that has at times reached double figures, with Ndiaye perhaps on the bench tomorrow night.

‘The players have picked themselves right up and turned the whole place around,’ said the Scotsman. Asked if he expected such a run of results, he added: ‘Honestly no. When you are down there, why would you go on such a run? Long may it continue.’

And despite the recent blip, Slot may echo that ‘long may it continue’ line. Although he mused that change can be good, Liverpool just need to stick with what they have been doing all season.

He will not accept standards sliding, will not allow them to limp to the finish line and, soon, they will surely put this bad month behind them to get their hands on the Premier League trophy.