Unbelievable, Arne Slot is facing the week that decides his future at Liverpool. The next three matches against West Ham, Sunderland and Leeds will be for life. 7 points is the minimum target. If it were less, the already unacceptable situation would become irreversible.
A club of Liverpool's stature could not maintain a 3-month decline, despite Slot creating glorious moments in his first season.
Liverpool is known for not being easy to fire coaches, especially those who have brought home success. Since the last century, the connection between coaches and fans has been almost indispensable every time the Premier League title is brought back. The closest people like Dalglish or Klopp all left Anfield by their own decision.
When Arne Slot led Liverpool to the championship in his first season, everyone believed he would stay with the Reds of Merseyside for a long time. However, just half a year later, his chair shook fiercely.
This decline was unpredictable, although looking back, there were signs from the end of last season such as a humiliating defeat to PSG, a poor performance in the League Cup final against Newcastle. Liverpool have not only failed, they have been completely crushed, something fans never want to see, especially in a final.
The two encounters with PSG last season showed that Liverpool were completely inferior to the representative from France. Alisson Becker was the one who saved The Kop from 2 humiliating defeats when he successfully blocked 16 goals in both matches. Being eliminated in the penalty shootout and having good results in the Premier League has overshadowed doubts about his form.
Unfortunately, since the defeat to Newcastle at Wembley, the decline has become increasingly obvious. Liverpool have won less than half of their last 30 games in all competitions, a number that is far from the Premier League champions' standards.
Many opinions say that the matches at the end of last season were due to no more goals, but in reality, superficial performances before the trophy ceremony sent warning signals. After the victory over Tottenham on April 27, the whole team began to celebrate as if the season had ended. Video of a party in Ibiza, Dubai flooded social media, while Liverpool did not win any of their final four matches, even losing two.
When they lost 2-3 to Brighton in the second leg, The Kop fans sang despite the team playing badly on the pitch. All of this makes this team act like a small team lifting the trophy for the first time, instead of the champion with the highest tradition in England.
Worrying signs have also emerged from the pre-season friendly matches. Slot's tactical changes have cast doubts, from the match against AC Milan to the Community Shield against Crystal Palace. A dangerous misconception arose that Liverpool haved a tradition of all-out attack, ready to take risks to win.
That is completely wrong with the identity at Anfield. Liverpool are an excellent attacking team but their defense is also extremely solid. Typically, under Rafa Benitez before, although they were more defensive, The Kop were no less creative. Klopp's Liverpool have further enhanced their defense when they reached the top with the biggest mark of the duo Van Dijk - Alisson, they are no less strong than Salah - Mane - Firmino's attack.
Since the beginning of this season, Arne Slot seems to want to take Liverpool in a direction that is no longer in line with tradition. That " misconception" appeared right in the opening round and has now turned into a mess.
Besides Arne Slot, the leadership also has to take responsibility. The £484 million spending has created a disoriented squad with no wingers, no central defenders, selling Diaz but not buying replacements. Gakpo and Salah have no competitors. In addition, instead of buying a classy striker, Liverpool bought 2. The £85 million and £130 million striker duo appeared in the same system as a seemingly absent-minded act.
The biggest transfer mistake was not spending an additional 10 million pounds to get Marc Guehi. The price Liverpool will pay could be more than £100 million as they are at risk of not qualifying for next season's Champions League.
If Arne Slot is still in charge until the winter transfer window, it means he has helped Liverpool recover somewhat. The Dutch captain has three games ahead of him that could save his season and career at Anfield.
However, if the situation continues to worsen, Liverpool will be forced to find someone who can do what Slot cannot do now, which is to get the team back on track.
