On a long enough timeline managers nearly always do get sacked. When they hadn’t done it by January/February time he was then almost certainly with us to the end of the season.
But, as the season has gone on that timeline on his sacking has to have shrunk. Right now at best he’s probably got ten games next season to show he can right the ship. At worst we fail to qualify for the CL next weekend, the fans make their feelings loud and clear and there’s some public showing from players that point to him having lost the dressing room.
But what they won’t do is just sack him because Alonso is available. I don’t even think Alonso is THE outstanding candidate in the same way Klopp was. They may genuinely see Alonso as a sideways move from Slot. Fans have an affinity with him but the owners do not. If he’d played for Chelsea instead of us then would there be such a clamour for him to come here?
At this point it’s almost not worth trying to second guess things. Journos are clearly being fed that information about him staying. It doesn’t really mean anything concrete because we all know that briefed stories like this are about controlling the narrative not telling people what’s actually going on.
The time to sack him to have a positive impact on this season was early in the new year. The time to sack him to have a positive impact on next season is the summer, not ten games in. I can’t for one second believe they don’t recognise that given we’ve been turgid all season.
I think the best place to settle on this, just for our collective sanity, is that he’ll be the manager next year - exactly as the journalists have briefed and events seem to be coalescing towards.
FSG might fervently believe that there really have been mitigating factors for the season. Even if that’s true, I’m struggling to see how closing this season and starting the next one provides the Ctrl Alt Delete they seem to think it does.
It’s become lost in the mess of the season, but it might turn out that Jota’s death had a much bigger impact than we all have assumed. It might help that we can move on a few of the lads who were close to him and bring in fresh faces.
But if you you follow that thought through to its conclusion, then I still think it might need a new guy to come in who wasn’t part of the grieving and the sadness and be symbolic of that process being over and it being time move on.
But I find it hard to get worked up about things I have no control over. If he is here I’ll back him and support him to put things right. We’ll just have to see how it pans out.
I think it’s obvious he’s lost a large part of the playing staff.
The thing is even if they feel Alonso is a sideways move we have evidence that Slot isn’t the right man any more. This whole season has shown it. Sometimes a new voice is simply required.
Of all the players who have let us down this year, Kerkez seems an odd one to have a pop at. He seems to have settled well and had a good first season.
There is a special affinity between us and Xabi of course, but think about that: Xabi is the first gaffer since Klopp to win the Bundesliga with another club than Bayern. That’s a very objective fact.
Last season he was chosen in PFA team of the season. It is interesting that Liverpool had Salah, Virgil Maca and Gravenberch in that PFA team of the season. Isak was there too. Look where they all are now.
Probably the best left back in the PL. This season I don’t think that he is even in top 5 of the best left backs in the league. That says it all about his season too.
If we were struggling and I could see the vision or his moves made sense I could be a little more forgiving but we look awful out there and nothing is improving and we play zero football. He´s dragged down our one very technical midfielder in Wirtz to look awful
Then after the game he comes out and talks such rubbish. He needs to be fired asap.
Oh there’s no doubting he’s a good coach. But you also can’t ignore the Madrid stint where he failed to get the required tune out of a bunch of underperforming stars. That isn’t to say the latter cancels out his success at Leverkusen or indeed makes him a bad manager.
But, he’s not that figure that Klopp was he arrived here. And maybe we don’t need that messianic figure as much now as we did then. But Xabi isn’t the one and only option but right now I’d be willing to give him, Iraola or pretty much any other half decent option the opportunity to turn this around.
Rab I agree. Klopp had tenure. Klopp was a man manager. Klopp iwas a leader. Klopp also fell out with Edwards and the DoF model that’s caused some of our issues with the hiring of Slot and the transfers that so missed the mark.
I agree with HiYH in that he also did well in Germany and took on Bayern. Also is Real a good benchmark? They’re a bunch of pricks and have some of the worst egos of any team. Yet we’ve also seen good managers fail going to Chelsea, those successful Premier League proven, so a valid concern.
I also like him window shipping using Chelsea to say he wants more control. Could that be reflective with us too and take away some of Hughes’ power?
I’m more worried we’ve lost all our leaders. Milner and Henderson came through under Gerrard as did Robbo and they’re all gone. VVD can’t do this on his own,
Slot needs to go. I’d back Alonso with a bit less Hughes solo on purchases.
Right now, if Slot doesn’t leave next week, I’m seriously doubting our direction and future. I can’t point to a single positive from this season.
Slot treats all the marquee signings this summer like they’re strangers. There’s no sign of his preparation. Every game starts like day one, and I haven’t seen anything build up. We need a Messi-level player to change this team under Slot.
