Judgement day beckons for Arne Slot. Not directly on Sunday, even if Liverpool and Manchester United can always judge themselves each other and a showdown at Old Trafford provides an easy opportunity for a comparison between teams who were separated by 42 points last season.
It may not even relate to Slot’s employers, with the sense he will remain at Anfield for next season. Speculation has swirled around Slot but Liverpool have not generated it or given indications they are considering a change. If many of the fanbase came to a definitive conclusion about a title-winning manager months ago, perhaps after a run of nine defeats in 12, and if the Dutchman refused to complain, saying it is up to others to determine if he is harshly judged, there is one verdict which is still to be delivered. His own.
He is still unsure what the finding will be. “It depends on the outcome,” he said. “I will judge myself in four games.” And if that is a hint that Champions League qualification has a significance beyond the financial consequences for Liverpool and the psychological importance of playing in the European elite, Slot’s eventual decision would be instructive. He has said it would be unacceptable for Liverpool to miss out on the Champions League. Secure the top-five finish that looks likely, however, and instead of a failure, does he deem it a damage-limitation job, given the mitigating circumstances?
But a manager who often sounds dissatisfied by elements of victories felt a perfectionist in success last season. Given some of the vitriol directed towards him, he is probably not his own sternest critic now. But he may find fault.
“Of course, I am judging myself constantly,” he added. “Was it the right decision to play five at the back in Paris? Was it the right decision to play him, play him, play him? These are the questions you are asking yourself. It is an ongoing process. You have to make 30, 40, 50 choices every single day and you try to judge them but, in the end, you can say, ‘okay, how was this season?’ I already have a certain opinion about that but the outcome of the next four games could make a massive difference in the way I judge myself over this season.”
Slot arguably merits credit in the bank, as the head coach who won only Liverpool’s second league title in 35 years. The man who dropped Mohamed Salah in November nevertheless pointed out that past deeds are not alone enough to keep a player in the team, or a manager in the dugout.
“Do I have to prove myself as Virgil [van Dijk] does?” he asked. “Yes, he has proven himself as one of the best and Mo [has] and we all have to prove ourselves but we’ve already shown in the past what we’re able to do. It doesn’t mean that is enough to keep playing every three days or stay in your job.”
Liverpool’s season has contained 17 defeats in all competitions. They are 15 points off the Premier League summit. They are 24 points down on this stage this season, when they had become champions. Slot does not believe the past can offer infinite protection.
“If a player won the last five years the Premier League, he needs to show up every week to stay in the team. That is how this industry works, so yeah, we – and I am part of ‘we’ – have to prove ourselves the week after and the week after,” he said.
“That is the football world. Every day we have something to prove. But it is up to others to judge if a quarter-final place in the Champions League has been good or bad. Losing to Paris Saint-Germain twice in a row; they are the best team in Europe in my opinion. Is it a reality to go through the league and the cups having the amount of players we have [out]?”
He will be without Salah at Old Trafford on Sunday, perhaps Alisson too. The winger’s imminent departure is a sign an era is ending; that will appear still more the case if the goalkeeper goes, too. “The players that won the Champions League and Premier League with Jurgen, I think if you look now, might only be Virgil and Joe [Gomez] contracted to the club [next year],” said Slot; omitting Alisson may have been a moment of forgetfulness or a broader indication of the Brazilian’s future. Liverpool have spent £450m, but part of Slot’s verdict on himself seems based on a sense they are in transition, albeit a particularly expensive version of it.
“I think the transition hasn’t been completed yet,” he added. “Again this summer, as a minimum of two will leave.” The sense is the manager will remain. Part of his argument for why next season will be better is that he expects fewer injuries, even though Hugo Ekitike will miss the start of the campaign. Part of his explanation for this year lies on the treatment table.
“What makes it hard is trying to win the next game with so many players unavailable,” he said. “That is hard. But that you get criticised in a job like this, that is not hard. I get to hear a few things but if I say I hear 10 per cent of what has been said I would say that has been a lot. But the last time I checked, the Strait of Hormuz being closed is not my fault, is it?”
