Despite initially being keen to back Arne Slot as Liverpool manager, Steve Nicol has admitted that he has finally changed his mind.
While others quickly turned on the Dutchman this season, Nicol suggested that hiring Xabi Alonso would be a mistake, pointing to his short stint at Real Madrid as a reason to be wary.
However, having seen Slot lead Liverpool to a dreadful performance at Man City on Saturday, the Reds’ legend has confirmed that he too now wants to see Alonso take over.
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Arne Slot reacts with frustration during Liverpool's UEFA Champions League last-16 second-leg match against Galatasaray at Anfield (Credit: Getty Images/Carl Recine).
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Carl Recine
Alonso should take charge because there’s ‘nobody else’ – Nicol
Given the nature of Liverpool’s collapse against City in the FA Cup quarter-final, Slot appears to have lost any last dregs of support he had amongst the fanbase.
Having been critical of the 47-year-old after the defeat, Nicol was asked on ESPN FC if he had revised his thoughts on appointing Alonso as a result.
“Considering what’s available, what’s out there, I probably would,” he said. “I know you and I [presenter Dan Thomas] were going at it and I was bringing up Real Madrid, I was arguing with you. The point is, I’m going to say Alonso now because at the time I still felt that Arne Slot was the right man.
“When you asked me the question I felt that Arne Slot still deserved to be there, my argument why you don’t rid of him was because of what happened [with Alonso] at Real Madrid. But the fact is that Slot’s possibly not going to be there, then it wouldn’t be the worst thing to happen if it was Alonso. There’s nobody else.”
Xabi Alonso looks worried on the touchline during Real Madrid's UEFA Champions League match against Manchester City at the Bernabeu.
Photo by Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images
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Nicol explains why he’s turned on Slot
Having been keen to see Slot given time to turn things around with the credit of being a Premier League title-winning manager, Nicol’s change of tune is stark.
Asked why he now felt Slot should go, the 64-year-old confirmed that it is just how bad Liverpool have become which is causing him the most concern.
“To be honest the biggest factor is the level of performance,” he says. “You go through the Liverpool managers, Klopp, Dalglish, Paisley, Shankly, they’ve all lost games and they’ve all had periods where things haven’t been going well. But the actual performance that Liverpool put on yesterday against Man City, it just felt like too much. Too much of the same.”
With Slot starting to lose even his most loyal backers, it seems inevitable that Alonso will arrive in his place this summer.
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