Liverpool’s battle to retain Champions League football for next season is starting to get a lot more complicated.
The Reds had seemingly put themselves back in a good position to finish in the Premier League’s top four after a better run leading up to the New Year.
However, Liverpool are without a win since 2025 became 2026, a run which now stretches to five matches under Arne Slot.
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Will Xabi Alonso be Liverpool manager by the start of the 2026/27 season?
If no, where will he be instead?
Xabi Alonso pictured during Real Madrid's La Liga match against Real Betis at the Bernabeu (Credit: Getty Images/Alberto Gardin/NurPhoto).
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Alberto Gardin/NurPhoto
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They are still in the mix, but wins for Chelsea and Manchester United on Sunday saw the Reds move down to sixth in the Premier League table.
It is no coincidence that both Chelsea and United have improved after making managerial changes of late, and as they sweat on a place in the Champions League and the financial implications of losing out on one, Liverpool owners FSG must surely be tempted to take the same route as two of their biggest rivals.
FSG will be watching Chelsea and Man United improvement
In one way, it is somewhat amazing that Liverpool are only two points behind Man United in fourth despite being so utterly abject recently.
Nevertheless, having beaten Man City and then Arsenal since installing Michael Carrick as interim manager, United are upwardly mobile at a good time of the season.
Arne Slot sits on the bench during Liverpool's Premier League match against Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium
Photo by Robin Jones – AFC Bournemouth/AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images
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The Red Devils’ acted decisively in sacking Ruben Amorim and by replacing him with a former United midfielder, there is a blueprint there for FSG to follow with regards to Xabi Alonso.
Few had expected United to beat Arsenal on Sunday, but their defiance of the odds went some way to showing just how much of a lift a change in manager can have.
The difference has been less pronounced with Liam Rosenior’s appointment at Chelsea, but the 40-year-old has steadied the ship and led them to two good Premier League wins in a row, including a handsome 3-1 victory at Selhurst Park on Sunday.
Slot is backing Liverpool for a top-four finish. Where do you think the Reds will end 25/26?
Slot predicted Liverpool will earn Champions League football in his pre-Bournemouth press conference!
Arne Slot prior to Liverpool v Leeds United - Premier League
Credit: Liverpool FC/Getty Images
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Liverpool, meanwhile, continue to look like a sinking ship under Slot. FSG will no doubt have been watching on with interest to see how mid-season changes affected Chelsea and Man United, but after seeing such stark improvement, maybe they will be edging closer to swinging the axe.
Xabi Alonso can save Liverpool’s season
Sacking the manager is of course only one part of trying to change the fortunes of a football club in the middle of the season. You also have to get the next appointment right.
In Carrick, United are unlikely to have found a long-term manager, but he is not a rookie coach having taken charge of Middlesbrough for almost three years and felt like a safe pair of hands to improve fortunes. So far, he has done that and then some.
The jury is still out on Rosenior as his appointment was essentially because of his involvement in the BlueCo system, but his fresh energy and positive approach have also breathed new life into Chelsea. Sunday was the latest example of that.
For Liverpool, the previous reasoning had been that sacking Slot could not be a solution because there was nobody out there who could step in effectively. Alonso’s availability changes that, and with 15 Premier League matches still to go, plus involvement in the FA Cup and Champions League, bringing the Spaniard in now could change the whole mood music at the club and save the season completely.
It is clear that FSG would ideally prefer to keep Slot for the whole campaign, but Chelsea – and in particular United – have given them two reasons to reconsider that stance.
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