Liverpool legend Jamie Redknapp says Arne Slot faces serious pressure next season after the Reds missed out on Antoine Semenyo, with Mohamed Salah's departure set to leave a major void
08:40, 29 May 2026
Jamie Redknapp believes Liverpool should've signed Antoine Semenyo
Jamie Redknapp believes Liverpool should've signed Antoine Semenyo(Image: Getty Images)
Former Liverpool star Jamie Redknapp believes the club's failure to secure Antoine Semenyo could prove costly.
Arne Slot is already facing growing scrutiny at Anfield, and Mohamed Salah's departure is expected to make the Dutch manager's job harder next season. The Reds had been strongly linked with Semenyo over an extended period, with the gifted winger widely considered as the perfect heir to Salah. However, Manchester City swooped in to sign the forward from Bournemouth in January.
He has made an instant and emphatic impression at the Etihad. In just 27 appearances, the Ghana international has struck 11 goals and contributed two assists as City secured a League Cup and FA Cup double this season.
The Anfield legend has warned that the missed opportunity could carry serious repercussions. He believes a player of Semenyo's caliber could have bolstered Liverpool's ranks next season, easing Slot's considerable burden.
"So there's going to be a lot of changes at Liverpool, and I think we have to trust in the team to get the right players in, but the right wing is obviously the key one because you need to find someone that's going to fill Mohammed Salah's boots," Redknapp said, as quoted by Mirror Football.
"I think Semenyo was a big loss. I think Liverpool probably had an opportunity to get him at one point. And then City jumped in, because I think he would have been a superstar at Liverpool as well. So that was a bit of a shame."
Arne Slot is facing intense pressure at Liverpool
Arne Slot is facing intense pressure at Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)
Slot has reportedly received the full backing of Liverpool's owner, Fenway Sports Group, to lead the club into next season. Redknapp believes the Premier League title-winning manager requires support in the transfer market, but acknowledged that the pressure on Slot will be enormous from the very first day of the new campaign.
"I think you've just got to trust the club," Redknapp added. "Arne will need a little bit of help next year, because if Liverpool don't start well, he knows the price on the ticket, the pressure will come on him very early, because of what's happened this season.
"And Arne knows that, but I think my feeling is he deserves a bit more respect."
Redknapp is under no illusions regarding the difficulties surrounding the club under Slot, nor the simmering frustration among supporters that has threatened to boil over this season. Nevertheless, he stressed that several factors, including the tragic death of Liverpool forward Diogo Jota, will have had a profound effect on the Reds' campaign.
"Liverpool fans are probably, in terms of a fan base, understand the game [really well]," he said. "For me, there's no one better, and I totally get their frustration with the football this year that's been served up.
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"It hasn't been good enough, been too slow, pedestrian, but I would also say there's a lot of mitigating circumstances, and I don't want to keep harping on to the start of the season.
"But that was very difficult for people to come into that environment. You know, you sign three or four new players, and then there was obviously Diogo Jota. And I just don't think you can underestimate how difficult that was for everybody to get to deal with because it was a teammate, somebody you loved, somebody that just won the title."
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