Arne Slot ‘shat the bed’ at Liverpool; how is he still manager?

Arne Slot no longer has any defenders…at Liverpool or otherwise. It’s now just a matter of time before he is sacked.

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No defence now for Arne Slot

With Arne Slot, there is a lot of noise about how badly/thinly spread FSG spent their £400m last summer (valid point) and the fact that winning the Premier League last season does grant him some leeway/grace (which is also valid).

However, when it comes to the leeway and squad shallowness, you do have to ask at what point do these mitigating factors start to become redundant.

First, the most immediate and alarming stat: 6 wins in the last 20 Premier League games, dating back to mid-September. Over that time period, that represents 15th place. Is that really acceptable to Liverpool, with the talent they have in their first XI? Is that representative of a coach getting the absolute last drop out of the talent he has at his disposal? I have to say, I’m really not convinced.

Then you have all the unwanted records he’s accumulated this season – worst overall run since the 1950s, City’s first double over Liverpool since the 1930s, Manchester United (the shambolic Amorim version) winning at Anfield for the first time since 2016, most shots conceded in one half since opta records began (v City), and a few more I’ve forgotten (or, more likely, unconsciously buried).

Then you get to the ‘calendar year’ thing. Starting with the FA Cup defeat at Plymouth on Feb 9th last year, you can draw a line there and deduce that what followed was the real start of the decline – losing to PSG in the CL having been absolutely battered to pieces in the first leg (biggest smash and grab of all time in winning 1-0, should have lost 8-1), losing the Carabao final with the most abject of performances, and a marked downturn in quality of performances and results in the PL as they sort of plodded over the line, failing to win a game after clinching it. A full year by now then, of sub-standard displays and a general sense of drift.

Squad management. He’s fallen out with Salah. By all accounts Jones has had it with him as well, judging by his desperate attempts to leave in January after arguing with Slot during a game. Slot threw Konate under a bus for being at the “scene of the crime” after the Leeds away game, a very clumsy choice of words. He refuses to give minutes to very capable and honest players like Endo and Chiesa. And he’s refused to give much football to the wonderkid Ngumoha, who started the season on fire, in favour of flogging Gakpo to death.

Media – the Konate comments, the sudden U-turn from last season’s “2 titles in 5 years” becoming “2 in 36” now it suits him, the public admission they can’t defend long balls or deal with low blocks, the obsession with name checking the PSG game all the time. Just extremely odd stuff.

All in all, even taking into account the mitigations, I don’t think the guy has got a leg to stand on. How he is still in a job is utterly beyond me.
Andrew, Swansea

READ: Arne Slot and Michael Carrick among 10 PL managers lucky to be in job

…After Liverpool strolled to a title last year it was understandable that people were predicting they’d do it again before a ball was even kicked. Slot was a steely-eyed genius who came in, mellowed the Liverpool rock and roll style and turned them into an unstoppable force. They then signed £400m worth of world class plug and play players like Isak and Wirtz and Ekitike alongside proven PL talent in Kerkez. At that point the noise of them winning the title died down and noise of them ushering in a decade of success ratcheted up.

This was the team to beat, the manager to beat and now they’ve made the shrewdest signings by going out and getting world beating talent. Never mind that they missed out on a centre half, it’s fine, look at that team.

Now, correct me if I’m wrong but with that level of hyperbole in Liverpool being the clear, out and out favourites where is the corresponding level of hyperbole now that they’ve shat the bed so messily. Not even hyperbole, where’s the modicum of justified criticism against a team that spent half a billion quid to take the next step and are barely gonna scrape into the Europa League?

It’s crazy the level of cosy protection the press and even opposition fans are giving what is quite possibly the worst, most expensive title defense in the history of the PL! Any other club would be ridiculed to the extent that they sack the manager but Slot gets a pass? Someone please help me understand!
Singapore Stu

Arne Slot is no Bob Paisley

So Liverpool are obviously shite. We have conceded four goals after the 90th minute and also conceded goals after the 80th minute in ten games (I think)

So we are shite in lots of ways; we are shite because we are bad at football and we are shite because we can’t stay switched on until the final whistle.

The reason I am pointing this out is because, somewhat hilariously, a load of Liverpool fans have pointed out to me today that Bob Paisley won the league first two spins he got and then season 3 they were dreadful in the league but popped up and won the champions league.

Now I’d love to see big ears in the hands of big Virg again but my major concern is that our being shit isn’t something that will magically disappear in the champions league. Man City absolutely didn’t low block us to misery but they still should’ve won the first half and did win the second. Teams might have more of a go against us but that could be worse than when they stay deep and try to pick us off.

I also wondered if, perhaps, scouting wasn’t quite so sophisticated back in Bob’s day which might’ve been an advantage. Foreign games probably weren’t easily watchable on TV and maybe the clubs had money to fly scouts around the world but it probably also involved a chat with a journalist (but maybe they’d lie if they supported the club you were playing against) and possibly reading the local news for match reports or maybe catching the game on a long wave radio? If anyone knows I’d love to know how it was done back then.

My point being, everyone will know how and why we are shit. That said, Djimi Traore and Igor Biscan both have a champions league winners medal and surely everyone knew they were shite.
Minty, LFC

Don’t resist the Carrick train

The ongoing questioning of Michael Carrick by journalists (who are seriously bad at their jobs, third division), on the topic of if he is going to be manager post this season is beyond dumb. He is trying not to laugh at them. How many times?

It is also discussed time and again by the pundits on the telly, and that takes me to the past players with their demonstrable lack of logic in deciding that Carrick should not have the job no matter what.

Gary Neville was a breath of fresh air when he first took hold of a microphone by treating the viewer with some respect. He is now out of his depth, seeming to think that he is a history professor. How many times did we hear him say that it wasn’t all about results, but about how the team played. How he wanted to see a United team play like a United team. Then he was gobsmacked that Carrick turned the team around to beat Citeh, then Arsenal, then Spurs, playing, yes, like a United team.

But.

No, he can’t be kept on. Why? Because of Ole. United need a big-name manager.

But if you want to be a history professor you need to look at all the events, not select the ones that suit your narrative.

A big-name manager like Mourinho, or Van Gaal? Both of whom created more boredom than football. That is history too.

Carrick should be judged on his performance. Nothing else. Not just results, performance. Overall impact on the club, the players, the fans, and the way the team plays. Then if he has delivered he stays, if not, he goes.

As for Keane, his resentment and jealousy mean he can’t even be taken seriously on this subject.
Tim McKane

Spurs managers are not the problem; ENIC are

I enjoy Dave Tickner’s articles but I think there is a bit of revisionism in his assessment that Spurs “sacked the league off” under Postecoglou last season. The league stopped being a priority, but we didn’t stop trying. We were awful and genuinely the 4th worst team in the league. Angeball was failing miserably in the Premier League. Things have not changed much this season and we don’t have the safety net of three patsies below us to take the fall.

I think Frank is under just as much scrutiny as Postecoglou was last season and if the league position does not improve, he will go before the end of the season.

But we all know that does not address the real issue. The actual problem is the long years of poor football governance from the ENIC leadership group. It feels like they are disconnected from the rest of the club. It has reached the point where the sense of disillusionment among the fans has never been higher. The board are disconnected from the fans, from the team and from the coaching staff. While the players and manager are the ones who face the ire of the fans after each disappointing performance, the board are quietly hiding away in their ivory tower giving the impression they think everything is fine if the money comes in from the next stadium concert.

The communication from the Spurs hierarchy has always been somewhere between poor and non-existent. They act like they are above talking to the fans. Romero made a previous challenging quote – “other people should be coming out to speak but they only show up when things are going well, to tell a few lies.” There was no doubt where that one was directed either. Little doubt that the players also feel a lack of support from the board.

The Pochettino period was great, but it didn’t happen because of a plan from the top, it was more a case of a few pieces fortunately falling into place at the same time. When you go through 15 managers, one of them is going to be good. A squad that more by luck than judgment, became balanced with a good player in every position. The emergence of top players like Kane and Son. But rather than build on that good fortune, our leadership frittered it away with some of the most awful decision-making football has ever seen.

Now we are meant to believe that we have a new leadership group. Same owners, but different leadership, apparently. To be fair, we have to give them a full summer transfer window before we can really judge them. But there are things they could do now, and they are not happening. They could start communicating with the fans and publicly support the team. They could address the ridiculous ticket pricing that results in Champions League games being vastly short of full houses.

To me, it has never felt like the fans are more disillusioned with the club leadership than they are right now. Every match I go to, the fans are trying to get behind the team. It still feels like the team are trying to make things happen. But patience is thin because we all feel like the club leadership is just going through the motions. They need to make a serious effort to reconnect with the rest of the club.
Jim (THFC)

Man City penalty was nailed on, actually

Am I the only one who thinks that the couple of mailbox contributors suggesting that Alisson was hard done by with the penalty are off the mark? Is that contention actually a widespread thing?

Yes, Nunes prodded the ball past him and had zero chance of catching it before it ran out of play. But the idea that Alisson rushing out and diving directly at him somehow hasn’t influenced the path of the ball isn’t correct. In an alternate scenario where Alisson stays on his line, are we suggesting that Nunes takes the same touch and the ball harmlessly bounces out of play?

The very act of coming out at that pace and angle meant Alisson was going to collide with the player unless Nunes literally decided to give up on the ball and hurdle him. But why do that when you’ve timed a run that’s seen you steal fully in behind the Liverpool defence with a chance of creating a winning goal?

So yeah, Nunes read the situation in real time and got whatever touch he could to highlight how reckless Alisson’s attempt to stop him was. Suggesting that the collision was irrelevant is the inverse of how I’d read that coming together – it was the final path of the ball that was irrelevant, because the impending foul on the player in possession led to that stray touch.
Keith Reilly

More on VAR, referees etc; feel free to skip

The mail from Dave, Wigan (not Wigan Dave?) piqued my interest. Have the refs got this wrong, or have IFAB yet again written ambiguous rules that could be interpreted in a few ways? I have come to the conclusion that yes, yes they have. I would assume that the rules quoted are if the advantage worked out, they’ve just forgotten to actually spell that out.

I.e. Had Haaland not subsequently fouled Szoboszlai and the ball still trickled in, Szoboszlai would have still been booked for his offence. He wouldn’t have been sent off as he didn’t deny an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. I would assume that if no advantage occurs, the offending player would absolutely be sent off for DOGSO still. I do appreciate it doesn’t necessarily read like that though.

Haaland’s foul confused everything. Not sure I agree that you wouldn’t go back to a City free kick either. Agreed Haaland shouldn’t just be wiping someone out but having not gained an advantage, you’d absolutely have to go back to the first offence (by Szoboszlai).

One other thing that struck me about it all is why do people assume the decision would have been different/’better’ pre-VAR? I’m not saying it’s 100% nailed on, but I’d wager the ref would have blown for one of the fouls (most likely the first) before the ball went over the line.

Anyway, it was all just great fun really. More of that please.
Gary AVFC, Oxford (hoping for a nice rest of Feb for the Villa)

…I think Howard Jones needs to review his law of football book as the most basic rule is that the ball must be in play for any foul to be given. That’s why you can pull, drag and push players in the box before a corner or free kick is taken, but once its on its way, its a foul. Referees can award cards when the ball is not in play but no freekick or penalties. A prime example is Anthony Martial being sent off against Tottenham a few years ago and no penalty awarded.

On the actual penalty yesterday, the ball had not gone dead before the contact, so technically its a penalty. In my view, this law needs to change as there is no way Nunes is getting there to score if Alison doesn’t make contact. There should be an actual goal scoring opportunity to merit the penalty award, the punishment should fit the crime. Instead a direct freekick in the box for the attacking team for fouls when not in a position to shoot and score.
JD

…Arne Slot bought up a very interesting point when he said that “that would be a goal for Salah in the past 7 or 8 years” when he was pulled back.

Ignoring the covering defender for now:

Do referees have to work out whether the strikers are more or less good and therefore more or less likely to score?

Do they also have to bring the goalkeepers ability into their decision making?

Should they bring current form into it. Ie Salah wouldn’t have scored in a month of Sundays the way he is playing.

Perhaps predictive AI should be used with a virtual stream shown on the stadium scoreboards.

Or perhaps a foul and yellow card is given when there is cover behind and a red card is given where there is no cover. So much easier and in the end fairer.
Tony

Weekend thoughts on all manner of things

Thought I’d chime in.

That Liverpool-City game was fun, wasn’t it? The red card was correct, those who think just allow the goal, do you also want mass hysteria and cats and dogs living together?

Can we talk about how city equalised from a hopeful, deflected cross, a flick on from a striker and “poked home” from an onrushing midfielder? Gerrit-in-the-mixer brexit ball? Embrace it pep!

Gyökeres, Garay Vance says his goals had no consequence, well as a supporter of a club who once deluded themselves into selling a 20 goal a season striker on the basis he “only won x points” that line of thinking is incorrect. Making it 2/3-0 kills any notion of a comeback, “game breaking” goals can be just as important as winners or equalisers. I wouldn’t crown him the new “Didiflop Berbaflop” yet.

Marco silva. His team takes the lead. The proceed to miss a host of chances in to kill the games the opposition win. I must admire the consistency even after 6 years he left the Goodson dugout.

The Brentford “improving after their manager leaves them for a bigger club” trend is going to see the champions league at the G-tech isn’t it?

Mykolenko turning into Leighton Baines 2.0 for 5 seconds absolutely legendary use of his special power!
EFCraig (VAR Good, PGMOL BAD!)

Aluko is all wrong

It’s time to dig out the Bernie Sanders gifs, because I am once again asking [what is Eni Aluko’s problem?] I mean, on the face of it, her problem is that she’s not getting enough work, which is as reasonable a thing to be stressed about as any. Increasing numbers of us are going to be in that (small) boat as this lovely century progresses.

Without projecting my ignorance onto others, I think those of us who mainly watch the men’s game – even those of us old enough to remember the Webbham Window* – may have forgotten that top level players do not all retire to a life of gold-plated luxury (or silver range rover and crushed velvet live-laugh-love-luxury). A lot of ex-players on the men’s side get into punditry because they need something to do for the next 50 years; on the women’s side, people still need a wage.

[*the point when footballers’ post-game careers shifted from opening pubs and Spanish villas, to opening clothing lines or whatever. Some time in 1992, when classy midfielders (and later husbands to exceptionally talented and tolerant women, it should be said) Neil Webb – future postie – and David Beckham – future jet-setting, human rights ignoring, bad tattoo-having, corpse-gander-queuing, philanderer and silly man – played their last and first Man Utd games respectively.]

Anyway, an ex-footballer wanting to work more as a pundit is nothing to get exercised about. And at a stretch, naming those who should be shoved out of the way to make space for them to get to this work isn’t necessarily a bad thing either. When discussions around equality in recruitment come up, usually there are people who stress that the only consideration should be, can they do the job well. Often appended with the sign-off of a true intellectual, eg “full stop!”, “end of!”, “say no more!”, “and that’s it!”, etc.

Obviously, the main problem with this line of thought it, yes, ideally that’s where we want to be. But this glorious meritocracy is *very* far from where we are now, isn’t it? Particularly on the men’s side.

Lee Dixon gets to commentate on England matches. Michael Owen thinks not watching films or reading books is a virtue. Why is Wayne Rooney everywhere? What is the benefit of Daniel Sturridge blabbing away on Super Sundays dressed like a henchman from a self-assembly 90s Wesley Snipes movie? Martin Keown. Paul Robinson. Owen Pretty Girls Make Hargreaves. Jamie Carragher. Rio BALLON DOR Ferdinand. The only golden generation players who seem to be any good at punditry are Gary Neville, who is on TV permanently, and Ashley Cole, who is barely on at all.

If Eni was pointing her finger at this blancmange of shit and saying, can I have a go at doing the job better than them?, then the answer should be: well, you weren’t much good when you did have a go, but Shearer was terrible when he started and he’s pretty good now, so fair enough.

But she’s not objecting to them is she? She’s complaining about Nedum Onuoha and Ian Wright (along with some bizarre attempt to say she doesn’t mean anything bad toward them).

Is there anyone who doesn’t think Onuoha is really good at his job? Does anyone listen to him and think, well yeah but how many caps for the women’s team has he got? This idea that only women should commentate on the women’s game, and men on the men, belongs in the bin with Elton Welsby and Richard Keys. And as for going after Ian Wright again… we don’t need to go back over the rights and wrongs from before, but what exactly does she think is going to happen this time? After the whole footballing community came down on her like a ton of bricks before?

Maybe she’s auditioning for Reform or something, but I honestly do not get what is happening here.
Neil Raines

The Boro are back

A penny for ‘Nob’ Edwards thoughts this morning.
Banjo, Prague