Arne Slot says it will be unacceptable if Liverpool do not qualify for the Champions League next season – and insists they must be ‘close to perfection’ to finish in the top five.
The Premier League champions are five points behind Manchester United and four adrift of Chelsea ahead of a tricky away trip to Sunderland – who are unbeaten at home this season – on Wednesday night.
Slot knows he is under pressure and said: ‘If we don’t have Champions League football, it’s definitely not been an acceptable season.
‘When I arrived here and only signed Federico Chiesa (his sole incoming transfer that summer), it was after a Europa League season. That does have an enormous impact on the way this club is run. I am completely aware of that.’
Slot added that Liverpool must be ‘close to perfection’ because of the points they are behind their Champions League rivals, before saying that bad luck has played its part in the Reds’ demise this year.
‘It feels like that, that’s for sure,’ he added, when asked about luck. ‘Even if we sign a player and he’s not even playing for us he gets injured (talking about Rennes’ Jeremy Jacquet, who will sign in the summer but is also now injured).
Arne Slot has bemoaned Liverpool’s bad luck this season as a factor for their poor campaign
The Reds season went from bad to worse with Sunday’s 2-1 home defeat by Manchester City
‘Sometimes it feels like that but the moment you start to feel it’s all bad luck, it probably comes to you as well so we should keep it away as much as possible and focus on the performance and what we can do to improve it.
‘But the amount of times we conceded late goals in extra time is far more than usual. The question is is it bad luck or are we to blame? I’ve tried many different things.
‘I’ve made defensive substitutions and the ball went in, I’ve kept playing the same players and the ball went in. We’ve tried a lot. I can fairly say we haven’t been lucky, that is definitely true. The question is are we unlucky or is it part of who we are?
‘That is something we can only find out in the upcoming three to four months.’
Liverpool will likely turn to Curtis Jones or Wataru Endo at right back given Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley are both injured and Dominik Szoboszlai, who has filled in there, is suspended after his red card against Manchester City on Sunday.
Joe Gomez is hopeful of training on Tuesday but remains a doubt for the trip to the Stadium of Light.
