Our ECHO Jury speak out on the latest goings on at Anfield as Liverpool's startlingly poor form continues
Arne Slot is under more scrutiny than ever before
Arne Slot is under more scrutiny than ever before(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
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The results just keep on getting worse for Arne Slot and Liverpool, who saw their season descend to a new low with Wednesday's 4-1 defeat at home to PSV Eindhoven.
Slot insists that he and his players are up for the 'fight' to try and turn things around, but after conceding seven goals at Anfield in a week and dropping into the bottom half of the Premier League table, Reds fans have been left scratching their heads over just how the club will emerge from this mess.
We asked our ECHO fan jury how they are feeling about the current situation.
Andrew Cullen
After the Manchester United game, there were whispers that Slot may not be the right person to lead the new look Liverpool. The whispers turned to distant drums after the Manchester City game, and the drums now feel closer still after Liverpool were dismantled by two average teams. There is now a marching Liverpool chorus, calling for change.
Yes, Klopp had a shaky period. Yes, Pep Guardiola has had wobbles, but both had surplus credit in the bank when they needed it most. Slot has some credit still to use, but it is vanishing at frightening speed. He looks as bewildered as the fans are.
A string of bad results can naturally cause calls for change. It is too early to consider a change in leadership, but the real kernel of problem is whether Slot can settle the turbulence, whether he can arrest the slump.
With Jurgen Klopp and Guardiola, it always felt like clearer skies were coming. With Slot, the same confidence does not exist, and there persists a growing, gloomy unease that he is not able to change tactics, formation, personnel, or our fortunes.
The most striking illustration of this is the refusal to drop Mo Salah. Trying to wedge in the top talent has not worked, and Slot seems to have shrunk when the problems have faced the team, rather than grow in the face of it. Last year, when the eyes were on him, he met the challenge and dazzled. This year, he has ignored challenges and faded.
The only real shining light in the team this year has been Dominik Szoboszlai. He has shown real leadership qualities, and he has not shrunk in adversity, even shifting positions to support the team. We all dream of a team of Szoboszlais.
Rhys Buchanan
Where do you start after back to back performances like that? I've tried to retain an air of optimism and belief throughout this run of results but these last two defeats do feel like a step too far and there was a foreboding sense of dread around Anfield come the final whistle on Wednesday night.
The worst thing for me is that we're giving teams like Nottingham Forest and PSV Eindhoven the satisfaction of coming to Anfield and getting famous wins, whereas before it was our form on the road that was cause for concern.
For me though, I don't see the sense in changing the manager any time soon. While his future does feel increasingly uncertain, you've got to point to the untimely injuries to the likes of Bradley, Frimpong and Wirtz. Slot won't be looking for excuses though, something has to change on Sunday and I'd like to see some surprises on the teamsheet because anything is better than this.
Maybe it would be nice to see Chiesa or Ngumoha have a chance to impact a game without being summoned to put out fires. Although options are scarce at the back, we've got to see an experienced player like Gomez come back into the side when we're this bad defensively. A positive result at the weekend is a must to stop the rot and steady this ship.
James Noble
The latter stages at Anfield on Wednesday were rough. So often, we see a multiplier effect in sport. Our current predicament, while there look to be a multitude of factors behind it, looks to be an example.
It’s bad. There’s no avoiding that. It needs looking in the eye. That can mean both recognising the need for change in elements of approach, as well as acknowledging the positives that are still present. There were strong, rounded phases within both the Nottingham Forest and PSV Eindhoven defeats.
That’s not enough, needless to say. But there is still evidence that the approach isn’t altogether dysfunctional. The team feels alarmingly brittle, though, with games running away from us far too easily. The durability of mentality and belief levels looks damagingly worn down. That, ultimately, has a way of superseding tactics, technical quality and the like.
Both internally and externally, empathy and a relentless desire to rebuild and retain standards can co-exist. Easier said than done, but possible.
What Arne Slot and Co gave all of us last season will, rightly, stand forever. Simultaneously, there cannot, of course, be limitless patience. There may come a point where a change in the dugout evidently becomes the best option for all parties. For some, understandably, we are already at that stage. I don’t feel we are yet. Undeniably, though, evidence of a change in trajectory is needed swiftly.