I think there were genuine factors behind this though, notable injuries to form players and little time in between those CL games and the cup final. Factor in Newcastle’s gameplan. At the time it was disappointing but somewhat understandable as to how it happened. But looking back at the football we’ve seen since then it does warrant bigger questions being asked.
He was brought in with an expectation that there would be some change regardless because the club wanted to add a dimension of control to the games that we often lacked under Jurgen’s brand of football. We saw that with the emphasis in the first transfer window being for his midfielder of choice.
Even with the league games though it was clear from performances from that February that teams had worked out ways to cause us problems.
I don’t think the changes where intended to be sudden though but part of a journey started upon when he was first appointed.
They were probably projecting a multi year rebuild but felt that they had little control over the order in which the rebuild took place as it became clearer which players were available and which ones leaving.
I think it might be a possibility that the standard fitness levels of the players when he landed at the club was as good as the last season under Jurgen.
This would explain the momentum carrying the players through the first part of the following/first season when we were picking up loads of points…
Facing Newcastle, then PSG in a short period of time, and the fixture congestion in general utilising a small nucleus of players… to me anyway, began to expose our lack of fitness on the pitch. This would happen if from day one of Slot landing, the training regime was not as thorough, or to the standard it needed to be and we have been in this ‘freewheeling’ limbo ever since.
FWIW… I note some of the players have been abroad again this week and taking selfies of themselves before having to prepare to face the demands of Old Toilet this weekend… If you are given time off work though, most of us would take it I suppose.!
I’ve thought about our slump and can not stop coming back to the misuse of players.
Imo we have a good number of limited players.
First and foremost is Gravenberch. He is our most limited player, he does some things extremely well, turns with ball, interceptions and to an extent dribbling. It’s his vision, passing and range of that limits him. No way can he be used how he and Slot see. If he’s on the ball his priority must be to make simple short passes to a more accomplished player (and we have few of them).
Szoboszlai is also limited in the vision and game reading department. He has a good passing range and can cross but doesn’t use it enough due to his lack of vision.
Macca was a surprise signing for me. Did he even do anything in that world cup? Anyway he rarely gives us what he seemed to bought for. Even so I’m glad we have him he’s the only player who has any real physical presence in midfield.
All these are limited. To overcome this we bought in Wirtz. Yet rather than use Wirtz to his best Slot encourages of all players Gravenberch to get forward?
So it all boils down to Slot misusing the resources at his disposal. It’s the ultimate in bad management.
I think that really oversells the expected change. Remember, Slot was the continuity candidate.
Rhetorically there was a lot of focus on the increased patience and control Slot was demanding, and the focus on getting a good passer at the base of the midfield to execute the gameplan of short pass through the opposition midfield was a reflection of that. But it’s not like we were stuck in amber under Klopp either. Every year we made a slight tweak or adjustment and so in terms of what played out on the pitch I dont think the change was anymore than the normal sort of year to year tweak we had become used to seeing it just got a lot more attention because people were focused on what the new guy was doing. For all the talk of increased patience under Slot it is somewhat surprising to see that we ended up with less possession than we had come to have under the later Klopp sides.
What we subsequently morphed in to is a drastic change from what was expected that Slot would bring
Apologies, that is my fault for rushing. Although I do think that being the continuity candidate was more around him not being Amorim. Some people appear to think that it meant there would be no change at all, or should see a return to the early days of our heavy metal football but we know his approach was slightly different from Jurgens and the fitness / injury prevention record was something they were looking to improve on.
Absolutely, I should have touched on this also.
Yes, totally agree. I think some of what we have seen has been part of a longer plan and some has been reactive - and it isn’t necessarily always clear which of these two pots the changes fall into. The failure to get the best out of the players certainly makes this all look worse (messier?).
However, I think it is also fair to assume that given the age and make up of the squad Arne inherited, we would expect relatively significant change by the time he left either at the end of the three year deal or later if a new contract was to be agreed.
Before he took over there was a recognised need to find a reliable centre forward, a defensive midfielder (Endo being an emergency signing to fill a gap) and to plan for the replacement of Mo, Joe, Virgil, Alisson and Andy. That’s already more than half a team.
Something we don’t have much of a view of, but that the club should, is how much backing Slot retains in the dressing room. I think that’s a key deciding factor in whether he stays or goes. We know Salah had issues with his treatment, but how do the rest feel in terms of where responsibility lies in terms of performances and results?
If the club feels Slot has irrevocably lost the dressing room he will be replaced. If the team are internally shouldering a decent amount of the responsibility, and are happy to continue working for Slot, then I can see the club sticking with him.
I’ve read recently that if the club think Slot has lost the dressing room… it will be the dressing room that will be dissected and moved on. Obviously the recent signings are unlikely to be stirring the pot at such an early stage, which would then leave some of the older hands at risk - what do you think Curtis, Alex, Robbo, Salah, Alisson even… These feel like strange times at LFC so soon after everything seemed to be perfect for a while
This all depends on why, if the players feel the tactics, physical preparation and mindset from the manager is wrong then management have to consider their concerns.
Ronaldo Nazário on nearly joining Liverpool FC in 2007:
“In 2007, I was very, very close to signing for Liverpool.
It wasn’t just interest—it was serious. I was attracted by everything about the club—the history, the passion of the fans, the energy at Anfield… it’s one of the most special places in football.
Liverpool has something different—identity, intensity, tradition. You don’t just play for Liverpool, you feel it.
But at that time, my manager Vanderlei Luxemburgo spoke to me and convinced me to take another path, which led me to AC Milan.
In football, small decisions change everything.
But I’ve always admired Liverpool—the way they play, the mentality, the connection with the fans.
Honestly, it would have been incredible… because a club like Liverpool matches everything I love about football.”
