His stuff is weird. He has a core idea that is very worth interrogating - we are not doing enough within season quality fitness work and that is leaving us physically unprepared for the stresses of a game. But his expression of those ideas is a mix of pseudo technical jargon meant not to explain but to demonstrate how much more than you he knows about this stuff (normally a big give away that said writer doesnt in fact know that much more than the reader) and mixed a heavy dose of AI - “and this is the uncomfortable question no one is comfortable asking”
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Makes you wonder whether this gobshite has been down the ear of Slot since he landed at Anfield… and Slot has been naive enough to listen to him… A blind man on a galloping horse can see that our players can’t last a full 90minutes in games… some can’t even last to the 6omin mark before blowing through their arse..
Bring back Jurgens methods asap is what I say…
Raymond Verheijen is the Dutch fitness coach who repeatedly criticised Jürgen Klopp’s high-intensity training methods, particularly during Klopp’s early years at Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund. Verheijen, a specialist in sports periodization, argued that the intense “gegenpressing” style and frequent double sessions led to high injury rates.
[image]BBC +2
- Who is he? Raymond Verheijen is a Dutch football fitness coach and expert in football periodization who has worked with various national teams, including Wales.
- The Criticism: Between 2015 and 2020, Verheijen often stated on social media that Klopp’s training methods caused a high number of injuries, particularly hamstring injuries, because of “too much too soon”.
- Klopp’s Response: Klopp famously referred to him as “that Dutch guy” in a 2016 press conference while defending his training schedule against accusations.
- “Raymond the Egg”: Due to his frequent, persistent criticism on Twitter (often using an egg profile picture early on), he became known among some Liverpool fans as “Raymond the Egg,” a term often used in debates about his claims.
- Later Stance: While often a fierce critic, Verheijen later acknowledged that Klopp learned from these mistakes and updated his approach to be more successful.
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I see a bunch of these “experts” on social media who usually just show some sort of pre-season fitness test and then say “Oh my god these professional clubs have no idea what they are doing, they should he doing football specific movements”. Usually they then go on to advertise their own services.
Invariably the clip they show will be like lactate maximum test from the 1st day of pre-season. There is one that I’ve seen a few times recently that pisses me off where someone shows Watford on crossfit stationary bikes and then angrily shouts at the camera that this doesn’t improve fitness for football.
If these guys knew what they were talking about they’d be working at a club not making videos on instagram.
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What was Slot’s training regime like at Feyenoord? I’m wondering whether the training regime is his idea or one of the stats guys advising him?
The problem with all of this is that we don’t see what happens behind the scene aside from a few select videos that are released through official channels.
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BBC has highlights on the web page now. I get the impression it took us a good 25 minutes or so to actually wake up. Everton had the better chances early on.
Glad we got the win but the way we’re playing doesn’t fill me with any joy. There are moments, Mo’s goal, what pass, but we seem so disjointed and open.
Still we’re still in there. 3 points off Villa with a better goal difference. I’m hoping.
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We were atrocious in the first 20-30 minutes. The worst I’ve seen all season.
No press yet the distance between the lines was just crazy. Looked like a load of drunks leaving different pubs and ending up somehow on the same park.
It didn’t really get any better it was Everton, who’s heads seemed to drop even lower than they were, after having a goal disallowed. We somehow scored just afterwards. Despite this Everton managed to equalise and 11 minutes of extra time was necessary for one team to make a difference.
I will add that there was nothing that made it feel like a derby on the pitch. I know the quality of these matches is often poor however they tend to make up for that with heart and commitment. Nothing was on show yesterday, just 2 very poor teams.
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There was one sequence in the second half where the ball was played back to a CB. Dom was low energy following the ball around, but he then saw the CB start turning his back to face pickfor who he’d already decided he was going to play it back to. That is a textbook pressing trigger so Dom responded and immediately jumped. Pickford got the ball with his only options being pump it long or pass it to the one everton player who could get t back short. Isak saw that and just ignored it until the ball was already on its way to him. He then belatedly starting to close that guy down and that pattern continued for another 2 passes resulting in 4 liverpool players being played through and now the wrong side of the ball while making it trivially easy for Everton of all teams to play through us like that. It’s utterly infuriating watching how predictable it all is
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We were not atrocious. Everton simply started better. Your views of the game seems predetermined.
Our high press was not poor; it did work, even if sometimes they played thru it.
Key issue was that Everton were always looking for the ball over the top, which is where our main weakness in the opening half hour lay. Even the equalizer came from that which Ibou inexplicably failed to deal with…
Conversely, they struggled to deal with the positioning of Jones wrt how his role was defined, including the rotation with Szobo.
Yes, it wasn’t a high quality game, as are most LFC/EFC games. We did manage to control a significant part of it, which took away the thunder and brimstone you would associate with them on such days..
Wirtz was dissapointing in the first half hour, but he was increasingly influential either side of HT and helped ensure control. Was especially impressed by the energy levels across the 100mins..
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At the end of the season review, even if we manage to squeak into UCL places, there should rightly be an inquest involving the different trainers alone with Hughes and Edwards.
What went down in training especially for the Fitness and strength conditioning side? Did Slot deliberately dial down the Fitness portion in pre-season???
Good point there…
This is a snapshot summary by Chatgpt
| Player | Games missed | Days out | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thiago | 23 | 118 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Stefan Bajcetic | 47 | 193 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Joël Matip | 25 | ~168 days | Inferred from injury on 3 Dec 2023 and being ruled out for the rest of the season. (Reuters) |
| Ben Doak | 41 | 197 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Andy Robertson | 1 | 121 days | Sum of the 2023/24 episodes shown in the injury log. (Transfermarkt) |
| Conor Bradley | 25 | 150 days | Sum of the 2023/24 episodes shown in the injury log. (Transfermarkt) |
| Trent Alexander-Arnold | 16 | 103 days | Sum of the 2023/24 hamstring + knee-ligament issues shown in the injury log. (Transfermarkt) |
| Diogo Jota | 16 | 81 days | Sum of the 2023/24 injury entries shown in the log. (Transfermarkt) |
| Alisson | 12 | 75 days | Sum of the 2023/24 injury entries shown in the log. (Transfermarkt) |
| Dominik Szoboszlai | 10 | 56 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Kostas Tsimikas | 9 | 49 days | Sum of the 2023/24 entries shown in the injury log. (Transfermarkt) |
| Mohamed Salah | 7 | 41 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Ryan Gravenberch | 7 | 19 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Ibrahima Konaté | 6 | 34 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Alexis Mac Allister | 6 | 23 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Darwin Núñez | 3 | 9 days | Public injury log snippet for 2023/24 shows a 9-day spell. (Transfermarkt) |
| Cody Gakpo | 3 | not clearly broken out | The public injury log I found did not show a 2023/24 days-total in the snippet. (Transfermarkt) |
| Caoimhín Kelleher | 2 | not clearly broken out | The public injury log I found did not show a 2023/24 days-total in the snippet. (Transfermarkt) |
| Wataru Endo | 1 | 11 days | Sum of the 2023/24 entries shown in the injury log. (Transfermarkt) |
| Joe Gomez | 1 | 6 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
| Curtis Jones | 13 | 84 days | Season-total injury log for 2023/24. (Transfermarkt) |
While this is slot’s injury crisis so far
| Player | Days out (est./actual) | Games missed | Injury Type / Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stefan Bajcetic | 323 | 46 | Long-term recurring injury; effectively full-season absence |
| Giovanni Leoni | 343 | 39 | ACL rupture (Sept 2025), season-ending |
| Conor Bradley | ~170–210 | ~30–35 | Knee injury (8 Jan 2026), out for season |
| Wataru Endo | ~120–160 | ~18–25 | Foot injury (11 Feb 2026), long-term absence |
| Hugo Ekitike | ~270–330 (proj.) | ~18–25 total | Achilles rupture (14 Apr 2026), out into 2027 |
| Jeremie Frimpong | ~60–75 | ~8–12 | Two hamstring injuries (recurring soft-tissue) |
| Alexander Isak | 159 | 28 | Broken fibula, returned April 2026 |
| Alisson Becker | ~35–45 | ~5–7 | Injured vs Galatasaray (mid-March 2026) |
| Joe Gomez | 52 | 4 | Multiple short-term injuries |
| Mohamed Salah | 33 | 2 | Muscle injury (March 2026) |
| Federico Chiesa | 20 | 2 | Minor injuries; returned |
| Metric | Klopp 2023/24 | Slot 2025/26 |
|---|---|---|
| Players injured | 22 | 11 |
| Total days lost | ~1,500–1,700 | ~1,670 |
| Total games missed | 362 | ~213 |
| Manager | Games missed | Matches | Avg unavailable / match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jürgen Klopp | 362 | 66 | 5.5 players |
| Arne Slot | ~213 | ~58 | 3.7 players |
Conclusion by chatgpt:
The Real Conclusion
- Klopp: Wider injury crisis (more players missing per match)
- Slot: Deeper impact per injury (fewer but more critical players)
This explains why:
- Klopp’s team looked inconsistent squad-wise
- Slot’s team may look structurally disrupted despite fewer absences
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Slot will be absolutely stupid to listen to someone not in the club in a full time or consultancy role…
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Some recent media comments suggest Slot will be here next season having had our summer transfer budget at his disposal; we’re going to have to dig in for a longer haul on this one. It could indeed become even worse than it is now. Limping to a CL place will be deemed a success. All that will be expected next season will be to remain top 4 competitive. I dont think this ‘rebuild’ could be ready for challenging for a title at the earliest until 27-28 season. Which doesn’t bode well for a fanbase whom have predominately rejected this manager.
This is true. But he’s also been played, a lot. And why has he played a lot? Because Isak skipped pre-season and then broke his leg in contact.
Leoni, slipped on the astroturf at the edge of the pitch.
Endo caught his studs in the turf.
Bradley twists his knee awkwardly clearing a ball.
Mamadashvilli is a contact injury.
Niggles for Gomez and Alisson are nothing new.
So really that leaves Frimpong and Ekitike. Frimpong seems to have a recurring issue and I wonder if we’ve not diagnosed it properly or if we’re just rushing him back.
Ekitike is a freak injury. You can point to sprint stats and pre-season etc all you like but these happen in professional sport. Aaron Rodgers snapped his 30 seconds into his first start for a new team in the NFL. Innocuous looking tackle but too much pressure and ping, done.
I agree I don’t think we look as fit as we did under Klopp or as other teams. But when it comes to injuries we have been pretty unlucky. If it was down to a conditioning issue we’d surely see more muscle injuries across a wider group of players. As it is Frimpong is really the only one whose had more than expected.
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Its less pre-season and more within season. Pre-season is short and top level players these days have too little time off to need much in pre-season to get them back into shape. And even if you have the best pre-season possible it will only take a couple of months of not doing enough during the week to find the lads off the boil.
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I don’t think Slot ran over a back cat and is just unlucky.
Fatigued players are more likely to misstep, get caught awkwardly, or react a second too slowly. You lose match sharpness (maybe because you have been on the bench all year), it makes you more susceptible. Little things that don’t directly cause injury but increase your risk.
Let’s say Isak had injured himself against PSG. No one would have been surprised because he should not have been in the pitch. Be it a contact injury because mental sharpness is not there to avoid a tackle or pulled muscle as he needs to play with intensity. Thankfully he didn’t but decisions like that increase the risk. Frequently if you are not 100% in one area you also often over compensate (leading to injury).
Even with Becker and Gomez they have been out more than usual which is part of a broader pattern of the team. Which if you take every case in isolation is nothing but equally could Indicate that training and recovery plans are not be protecting them effectively.
It’s very difficult to say conclusively as we are talking about risk, and probabilities. However there is a pattern which indicates it’s not random.
I can’t point to the exact cause, because injuries are more than conditioning, they reflect fatigue, mental sharpness, confidence, carrying niggles, returning too soon, poor rhythm, and frequently players being pushed or thrown in. It’s likely a combination of the above.
Given how fitness levels have dropped, intensity has dropped, and for most of the season over relying on a small group of players. I don’t think it’s chance.
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This 
@rab
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I didn’t get all the training panic, so wrote this … sorry
Leoni
Arrives on 15th Aug, requires games to get up to match fitness, plays his debut 38 days after signing. Is his ligament injury really connected to just a month period of LFC training sessions??
Bajcetic
Not interested, can’t even remember his last match, played 29 games in 4 years, loaned out twice, unlikely to get new contract, sadly likely to be released in 2027 with no further match time. Are his injuries really connected to Slot’s training sessions considering he’s never attended one?
Endo
Not interested, injured right on his 33rd birthday, absolutely gutted obviously. Is the artificial ligament now connecting his toes back up related to LFC training sessions? Probably not going to play for Liverpool again.
Gomez
Not interested, he’s had injuries throughout the 11 years as a player here. Are those 4 games missed this season due to an injury even relevant? And are the injuries really connected to LFC training sessions?
Salah
Not interested, when he was subbed off against Galatasary after scoring our 4th goal he didn’t look like a player injured. If we’re ChatGPT counting an exact 17 days out between that match above and his swift return against City in the FA cup, including the international break in that period also. Then It’s not relevant, for all we know he could have been sorting his new family home for his next club that he signs for? No need to even mention the 7 matches missed due to the AFCON. Are his injuries really connected to LFC training sessions?
Chiesa
Not interested, are the 2 games missed due to some injury even relevant? He can hardly get on the pitch when fit and when he’s selected for the squad anyway. Are his injuries really connected to LFC training sessions?
Isak
Not interested, an unfit Isak missed an entire pre-season and the start of our season because he really wanted to play for us. Gets involved in 8 matches and then pulls a groin, misses 5 matches, back in contention for the next 8 matches, scores a fantastic finish at spurs and blindly didn’t see the crazy lunge incoming from vdv. Are his injuries really connected to LFC training sessions?
Ekitike
The saddest news in our entire season. Incredible debut only 4 minutes into it. Stood out as one of the best players in a very average season. He’s involved in the squad for a total 47 matches, misses 3 matches in January (bore draws) due to a muscular injury. Then 3 months later the achilles tendon injury, misses final 6 games of this season and who knows for next. And then so this Brundish fella who states the detail that matters is that Hugo wasn’t being pushed hard enough this season in training and/or matches. The fewer sprints could have been due to not fancying chasing after better quality premier league defenders, or not enough through ball passes from midfield to follow after. Also, no mention about him being rather slender physically for a 6ft 3” frame (similar to Isak) weighing roughly the same as the protected 5ft 7” 17 year old second season Ngumoha. Players are already fit as a fiddle, and that’s why most push it towards the lean and muscle definition, they also have gyms in their own homes, when they’re not playing they are probably eating, sleeping and additional exercising. Are the muscular/tendon injuries really connected to LFC training sessions?
Becker
33 year old (600 ish total career games) plays in 31 out of 52 matches so far this season, probably not even worth mentioning whether his injuries are really connected to LFC training sessions?
Mamardashvili
Injured during our last game, not in training. Are his injuries really connected to LFC training sessions?
Now onto maybe the relevant injuries possibly connected to LFC training sessions? (Which should be why the club need to be in the market this summer for a tough defensive style RB similar to Bradley, as patching up the position with Szoboszlai is not a fix.
Bradley
Has been in and out with injuries since arriving on the scene 5 years ago. He’s a 100% all in type of aggressive player, probable cause for injuring. Not likely to slow it down in training or match days. His serious injury was chasing an open ball to put it out for a throw-in, says it all. Are his injuries really connected to LFC training sessions? - Maybe … should he be trained differently due to his intense duels and decision making?
Frimpong
Never played premier league, doesn’t have any injuries for 3 years straight, then after joining Liverpool experiences muscular injuries. Are his injuries really connected to LFC training sessions? - Maybe … is he running too fast or too slow, is not having 3 CB’s around him affecting his running, is he just getting used to the demands of a top league, is it just his turn to get an injury?
PS - there was no mention for Wirtz’s muscle and back injuries, he missed 2 victories and 3 losses and then was back in contention shortly after. Playing against Luxembourg and Slovakia mid November may have contributed to tiredness or are his injuries really connected to LFC training sessions?
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True to some degree but you can’t say Leoni or Endo’s injuries were anything but game incidents.
Equally you can’t say Isak or Mamadashvilli avoid those contact injuries if they’d played more frequently.
Frimpong and Bradley have basically been playing injury tennis since pre-season so neither has had a nice consistent run or the option to rotate as much as you’d like.
Alisson has missed 15-20 games in each of the last three seasons and Gomez fewer this season than last with his latest a contact injury.
Now it’s self-fulfilling in some sense but those players with the most minutes this season aren’t the ones picking up injuries. Van Dijk, Konate, Szobo, Gravenberch, Wirtz, Mac Callister, Gakpo, Salah. High intensity players, low intensity players, defenders, midfielders, attackers. Slower movers and some quicker ones. Generally no pattern.
I’m not saying the conditioning has been good enough. And I’m not saying Slot couldn’t perhaps have balanced minutes better but Leoni, Endo, Isak, Mamadashvilli, Gomez, Alisson are either unlucky or to be expected type injuries. Ekitike fatigue is partly down to missing Isak due to a contact injury.
We can do better for sure but we have to accept that there is a degree of luck to injuries. For crying out loud who else has lost a CB to a strip of astroturf, let alone sign another CB for next season only for him to pick up a season ending injury in his next game.
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The re-build needed would test a world-class manager and Slot isn’t close to being that man.
I think a lot of people are under-estimating the challenges we face going into a new season.
We already know Salah and Robbo are going. If Slot is still here then it’s completely pointless Endo and Chiesa hanging around. Joe Gomez, God bless him, is pretty much finished as a footballer.
That’s 5 of the current squad who wont or shouldn’t be here at the start of next season. We have 2 RB’s who are almost as injury prone as Joe. We will also have 2 young lads who wont be available until late in the year.
It’s anybody’s guess whether Gakpo and MacAllister will get back to anything like their top level. Nobody knows how Jacquet will shape up.
You can add Alisson to the list of perma-crocks and VVD’s game-time will surely have to be reduced next season.
All this will be on the back of the World Cup with a manager who has already lost the vast majority of the fan-base and who has shown over the last 12 months he doesn’t have the nous to fix the numerous on-field problems and get us playing with any shape, structure or confidence.
It’s a shit-show now and has the potential to get a lot, lot worse given the challenges we will face. I can see things getting really fucking grim before the end of the year.
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That’s the take I’m increasing moving towards. If Slot stays it will require another really turbulent summer of turn over to account for not just the loss of Robbo and Mo but also needed replacements for the collection of senior players he just wont use. It would require maybe 6 new players again. That is a path to madness getting to August and being told again we need to be patient because it was a lot of player movement that needs time to come together.
And if our manager is so in need of so many new players to be successful or even playing anything recognizably as a style, isnt that an argument in itself that the manager doesnt provide much independent value? Its increasingly feeling like the only real argument to keep him is that the liverpol job is hard, its difficult to identify a slam dunk candidate so maybe just keep the guy who is already here as the easiest decision.
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