Arne Slot is learning to deal with a level of pressure and scrutiny few can relate to.
That’s what happens when you coach one of the world’s biggest clubs and results aren’t going your way. That said, any manager would be feeling the heat after a run of nine defeats in 12.
Sunday’s trip to West Ham United could prove crucial not just for Liverpool’s 2025/26 aspirations, but for Slot’s long-term position. That said, the Hammers have been kind opponents in recent years, with Liverpool winning eight of their last nine meetings - Slot has already overseen three wins in the Liverpool hot seat.
But the one hiccup in recent years was the 2-2 draw at the London Stadium in April 2024, in Jurgen Klopp’s final game against the London side.
It came among a string of results that ended his chances of signing off with a second league title. An optimistic league campaign was suddenly snuffed out by one win in five.
The frustrations on that particular spring afternoon boiled over, with Klopp and Mohamed Salah infamously exchanging words on the sideline at the London Stadium.
(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Mohamed Salah clashed with Jurgen Klopp during the draw with West Ham in March 2024 (Image: (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images))
That’s what pressure does. The intensity and scrutiny can sometimes boil over. Even the usually charismatic Klopp lost his cool.
Perhaps the desperation of fans ultimately weighed the team down. Klopp has never shied away from how supporters’ expectations make the Liverpool role unique.
“The whole situation is a challenge,” he told Sky Sports in a 2016 interview. “Liverpool is a club with a big, big, big history and all the clubs in the world have a big history if the present is not too successful.
Jurgen Klopp
Klopp felt the pressure of managing one of the biggest club in world
“If you have never had success then nobody knows how it is but in Liverpool everybody knows how it was. That's part of the problem.
"There is a lot of pressure on the situation. That's normal. The challenge is to stay cool enough to handle the pressure in the moment so that you can succeed in the future.
“It needs time, nobody wants to hear it but that's the truth, if you want to have success in the future you have to be ready to work now. That's the job.”
Slot will indeed hope he is given time to turn things around at Anfield. Another defeat on Sunday, and many will question whether he should be afforded the opportunity to fix this disastrous campaign.