Liverpool FC - Talk /Gossip/Rumours 25/25

jesuisjuste · 13-05-2026 02:18PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124464940#Comment_124464940

A historical rival, who was battling relegation when we were winning the title, surpassing us in such a short timeframe is a devastating realization for the club. We are in danger of accepting mediocrity, given our lack of pace, intensity and propensity to give the ball away in stupid positions.

Having someone new would at least tell us whether the current team have it in them to pick those stats back up, or if there is a serious rot bedded in the players too. Even if that manager doesn't pan out long term, just knowing we are able to compete will bring the belief back to the fans, and set us back up for future success. Maybe FSG see something we don't, I dunno, but we are in danger of a 90s style doldrums for the club.

J Mysterio · 13-05-2026 02:20PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465070#Comment_124465070

And they will think it's a big achievement, and arguably they are right, given the standing of both clubs at the end of last season.

They have went from continuing, spiralling, disaster to finishing above us.

We have went from PL champions to almost not achieving CL, and finishing behind Man Utd.

There's plenty more context to add to those simple points, most of it which makes our situation look worse. But, in simple terms, Utd are going in the right direction, and Liverpool are going in the wrong direction.

Fans of rival clubs will always have banter on league positions etc. and that's not going away. Whether it makes an impact on you or not is entirely your prerogative, but it's legitimate.

mormank · 13-05-2026 02:20PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124464940#Comment_124464940

I'm talking about the emotional reaction to finishing behind the old enemy in the league for the first time in a long time and your retort is about prize money being the same so it's irrelavent. What am I supposed to say? Talk about missing the point.

Sure we have tussled with Chelsea or city for a few years but Utd will always be our main rival in my head. They have largely been an irrelevance to us for almost a decade now so to be finishing behind them is not insignificant to me.

Also, despite this rivalry we have never really been in true direct competition with them for major honors. When they have been at their best we were miles behind them and when we were at our best they were miles behind us. The thought of potentially being in direct competition with them over the next couple seasons is compelling.

Fitz* · 13-05-2026 02:23PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465084#Comment_124465084

I'm experienced enough to know that this is an outlier season for Man Utd. the bare 40 games, no midweek games etc. It's easy when you've 7,10 or 14 days top prepare for every game while opponents are playing with 3 days preparation. They'll revert to the mean next season IMO, especially with such an inexperienced manager trying to navigate all of this.

Fitz* · 13-05-2026 02:26PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465085#Comment_124465085

I didn't say the prize money is the same so it's irrelevant. I said that finishing 3rd, 4th & 5th is basically the exact same thing as they all achieve the same thing. They are all also-rans in the league, and they all qualify for the CL the following season.

Would you rather finish 4th but Man Utd are 3rd, or finish 5th but Man United are 6th? They're the same thing. Basing your opinion on Liverpool's season on where Man Utd finish is a stupid POV in my eyes.

8-10 · 13-05-2026 02:31PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124464706#Comment_124464706

Yeah I'm actually worried they could win the league sooner than later. The way the last 2 seasons have gone with City off their pace and Pep potentially about to leave means it's open for anyone to have a run at the title

Arsenal are the best of the bunch right now with good squad depth but United not far behind

Libertine07 · 13-05-2026 02:46PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465092#Comment_124465092

You could just as easily argue that last season was the outlier for Utd, finishing 15th with a manager who was completely wrong for them.

I think this season is a better reflection of what they're capable of than last season.

SodiumCooled · 13-05-2026 03:16PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465110#Comment_124465110

Not a chance. It's almost worth them finishing where they are and so positively in order to force their hand somewhat in appointing Carrick as permanent manager. It will all fall to pieces fairly quickly next season and I would expect him sacked by Christmas and united back on the manager merry-go-round again.

redoctober · 13-05-2026 04:14PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465085#Comment_124465085

We finished behind them in 21 and 23 but I take your general point. This season, the problem is that we've regressed so much and they've improved themselves a lot from a low base. For next season it's anyone's guess what'll happen. Can't help thinking that if we stick with Slot we'll struggle whereas they may stabilise further. Champions League will impact them and maybe the overall league quality will improve after what's been a pretty poor affair this time round. Who knows.

jesuisjuste · 13-05-2026 05:06PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465092#Comment_124465092

Fewer games is a benefit for sure, however the difference between a United and say a Forest, is that United have a much deeper war chest, and good bench players to build up in preparation for a season with more games and more rotation. And in fact they will be much more willing to spend on squad depth than FSG have been in the past.

Having said that, Carrick is for sure untested with those pressures, and he's had a pretty clean run of things to begin with. Could all come up a cropper at the start of next season for them too.

Enzokk · 13-05-2026 05:24PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465359#Comment_124465359

I see Carrick has been given the preference to be appointed permanently. That is Michael Carrick that was mid-table with Middlesborough in the Championship last season and let go who looks set to get the job permanently. I know looking at stats when the team is not doing well can get people upset, but the stats were pointing out Villa was outperforming their position and it would not last when they were flying earlier this season and see what happened. United have been playing better but they have had advantages they will not have next season and people will have had time to see how they set up under Carrick, I am not worried about them with him as their manager.

I was more worried Amorim would actually succeed than I am with him at the helm. Thank goodness for his mates in the media pushing that he has to get the job instead of thinking with their heads.

I do not think Slot should survive, not because I think he is not up to it but he has lost the fans. Once that happens it is very difficult to carry on. I just don't know how much we can apportion to the emotional turmoil the squad went through and then the disrupted pre-season in terms of fitness either. If we change manager and the new manager succeeds I think that will be overlooked and Slot maligned as useless but you build your base for fitness in pre-season and we did not have that. I do not think it is a coincidence we have been looking gassed most of the season.

And before anyone points out we have a World Cup this summer so we will have another disrupted pre-season, so does every other team. We were the only ones that had our situation at the start of this pre-season so it is not as simple to say it will happen again as we will not be the only team with a disrupted pre-season for next season.

Infoseeker1975 · 13-05-2026 06:46PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124465110#Comment_124465110

I think it is far more likely Utd will not get CL next year than win the league. Playing 3 times a week with most of their starting lineup on international duty will stretch them.

Likely they will have around 40% more games next year.

Appletart Upsetter · 13-05-2026 08:35PM

https://twitter.com/AnfieldEdition/status/2054474663359586592?s=20

...

Appletart Upsetter · 13-05-2026 08:48PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466096#Comment_124466096

The fact is, if Xabi Alonso was the absolute outstanding candidate as far as they were concerned at the time – he’s available now, and there’s a summer coming up where if you were convinced he was a slam-dunk and would absolutely do a better job than Arne Slot, then the opportunity to appoint him is there and all they’d have to do is pay up the final year of Slot’s contract.
“The fact that they’re not doing that, and we get the sense that it’s absolutely not happening, that there’s no pursuit of Alonso ongoing, I think it gives you an indication that they’re not absolutely convinced about him.”

~Rebel~ · 13-05-2026 08:56PM

It's kind of a pointless comment though… like, first and foremost, of course no-one can be fully convinced he'd be an absolute slam dunk. Like, there are very few managers (and none available) about whom you could say that. Any managerial change will come with some trepidation. Just like we had with Slot.

And the season's still ongoing. Sure, they could've gone for him earlier, but as many have said, he's a very systems oriented manager and there's a huge risk of starting off with majorly bad (Amorim-style) vibes if thrown into a dysfunctional team with very little time to embed a new system. Like, imo, the smart thing to do has always been to make the permanent change in the summer. In which case, any lack of action thus far doesn't really say anything either way. (As for the lack of public interest, there'd have been zero benefit to undermining the current lad mid season, and would've only turned every presser into a total circus).

Right now, nobody outside the club knows much of anything. We'll see where we are in a few weeks.

Libertine07 · 13-05-2026 08:59PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466121#Comment_124466121

I'd guess that it's more about believing in Slot than not rating Alonso or any other manager.

It's pretty obvious that Slot will be here next season and has been for a while now. Ben Jacobs is reporting tonight that there won't even be an end of season review. We don't know what has gone on behind the scenes this season, maybe there is something driving this that we don't know about. Maybe a mixture of the league win, Jota, and Hughes knowing he left him short last summer.

Beth Lindop was good on The Anfield Wrap yesterday, she has broadly been supportive of Slot but said that the fair course of action (to give him grace for all the mitigating circumstances this season) is not the right course of action for Liverpool's future. Hard to argue with that but it is what it is.

Appletart Upsetter · 13-05-2026 09:37PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466138#Comment_124466138

It's a good point. We won't know what their true intentions are until the season is over.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466157#Comment_124466157

I might be wrong but I get the feeling they really do believe in Slot. My gut feeling is he will still be here in August and they will have signed the players he wants.

If he turns this around and makes a success of next season, I'll be absolutely delighted but the odds are stacked against him.

Libertine07 · 13-05-2026 09:53PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466260#Comment_124466260

If he can do that it will be outstanding, it's almost unheard of for a manager to come back from this level of discontent. I find it hard to believe he can but I hope I'm wrong.

~Rebel~ · 13-05-2026 09:55PM

I don't believe for a second that they won't at very least do a debrief with the players to make sure they're still fully on board with Slot. If they genuinely are, then fair enough if the club really did still have some faith in him - but if they're not, then the whole thing is a waste of time to continue.

Appletart Upsetter · 13-05-2026 10:05PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466295#Comment_124466295

Watching the performances of the team over the course of the season but particularly in the last few weeks, it's hard to believe they fully trust what Slot is asking them to do.

If Slot stays, then he needs to reassess his approach. He seems like a smart guy, he surely can see the shortcomings in this way of playing in the Premier League.

Dick phelan · 13-05-2026 10:11PM

A club the size and success of Liverpool should never accept mediocre. Liverpool should be challenging for the title every year pretty much.

SodiumCooled · 13-05-2026 10:16PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466295#Comment_124466295

Whatever about anything else I highly doubt the players will have any say or any platform to give opinions on the manager to club higher ups - that’s dysfunctional Real Madrid player power stuff that isn’t the norm.

Not the norm in any context, imagine a scenario like that in a normal business with a managers team being asked to go to a more senior manager/director and give opinions on the manager - it would be an absolute s**t show and just wouldn’t happen.

8-10 · 13-05-2026 10:23PM

I don't believe we know their true intentions with Slot either, BUT, I do think it's clear that they don't rate Xabi so I think that's the first thing fans need to be comfortable with

Whatever happens, Alonso won't be out manager so let's stop pretending he's our only option in anticipation of him going elsewhere so we can moan that we missed out

ratracer · 13-05-2026 10:24PM

I suppose the only positive is that “if” Alonso signs for Chelsea, he’ll probably be sacked by October, which is probably about the same time as Liverpool will be looking for a new manager……

Libertine07 · 13-05-2026 10:32PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466376#Comment_124466376

If they didn't rate him, they wouldn't have been interested in him two years ago. This is more about wanting to back Slot imo.

They may have decided after Jota died that whatever happens this season (within reason) is understandable. That's not me using it as an excuse, as it doesn't explain so many of the issues we've had. But it may just feel wrong to sack a league winning manager at the end of a season where one of his players died. We don't know what's gone on behind the scenes.

~Rebel~ · 13-05-2026 10:45PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466361#Comment_124466361

… that's super common at big companies. I've worked at two companies that did it. They call it "360 degree reviews", and then you also have skip-level meetings, where you talk (more generally) about how things are going to your bosses boss.

Liverpool have also definitely done it in the past, with the leadership groups opinion being asked in relation to potential new manager hires - obviously a slightly different case with an existing coach, but when performances have fallen off a cliff as they have, then it doesn't feel too out of place to at least check in. The distinction between that and the Madrid issues is just how much power the players have. Asking an opinion is not the same as granting power to the players.

GiftofGab · 13-05-2026 10:51PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466361#Comment_124466361

It is normal in the form of surveys. Every employee in our company is asked to complete a survey about managers, culture, opinions etc. The results go to senior directors.

jesuisjuste · 13-05-2026 11:13PM

There will definitely be an end of season review, it may not be directly targeting slot but I’m sure he will have to give his take.

One thing Slot seems to be very good at is taking all the heat, especially away from the club itself, so maybe there’s a level of contentness from the suits at the club about that.

Regarding Alonso, I know most are not sold on his managing chops yet (personally I think he’ll be fine at least) but one thing is for sure, he is definitely going to get a high level of respect from the fans and senior players from the get go. If there is a bounce to be had, he would be one to get it. Whether he can sustain it is a different question. But honestly at this point I’m feeling pretty low about our play, I’d be happy just to have a bounce and a bit of joy, even if it was just for the short term lol.

Tommysocks11 · 14-05-2026 10:33AM

Read this morning that VVD wants to leave now in summer for Galatasary, might be tabloid gossip but its a trend I feel of players leaving if they can, Alison, probably Konate, Salah, Robertson and maybe Jones, whole heart being ripped out of the team, I really miss Klopp who was special and im not sure at all about slot, in truth I want him gone and alonso in as at least alonso will improve standards and demand hard work, all season we are being out run by opponents, heard FSG are saying loss of Jota effected team and yes to a point but these players are professional and we all lose family and friends unfortunately and have to move on, we actually won first 5 league games of season after his passing so I think that's an excuse really, and by the way I loved jota and RIP to him, just get rid of our arrogant Dutch manager and watch things improve dramatically

redoctober · 14-05-2026 10:40AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124466425#Comment_124466425

Exactly. Very common to have feedback. In my experience it's often ignored but that's another story. I'm sure the management will know very well what opinions are like about Slot from the dressing room. However, what we don't know is how things are behind the scenes in the club and how they're viewing "success". They may be quite happy to have a seeming "yes-man" in Slot, also to finish in the CL places meaning stability financially and they might be taking into account the changes in the squad which have made this season more challenging for Slot. All of which might be quite a reasonable way to look at it. What I'm secretly hoping is that they see Alonso as someone who doesn't come along all the time. He's won in a harder league than the Dutch against a large well-financed opponent. Right now I wouldn't be shocked to see Slot here next season but it'll be mightily disappointing if we see the same football next time out.

Liverpool FC - Talk /Gossip/Rumours 25/25

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