Liverpool head into the international break with Arne Slot under real pressure, and not just because of a few bad results.
The wider problem is that too much of this season has felt disjointed, with Liverpool struggling for control in midfield, lacking their usual physical edge and too often looking short of ideas when games tighten up.
A pause in the calendar will at least give Slot a chance to reset, get bodies back, and spend time on the training ground rather than simply firefighting from one fixture to the next.
Just how bad do you want Arne Slot gone? 😬
With Paris Saint-Germain waiting in Europe after Liverpool’s 4-0 win over Galatasaray, this break feels like a genuine opportunity to correct a few flaws before the season slips away completely.
Arne Slot should work on fresh set-piece ideas for PSG
If Liverpool are going to get past PSG in the Champions League, they need every marginal gain they can find, and that should start with set-pieces.
Dominik Szoboszlai’s opener against Galatasaray came from a cleverly worked routine that had clearly been drilled on the training ground, and it immediately changed the mood of the tie.
Liverpool showed something similar against Manchester City last season too, when Slot openly praised the planning behind a corner routine that led to a goal. Against the current European champions, open play alone may not be enough, so Liverpool have to lean into one of the areas where English clubs have often found an edge.
If Slot gets anything from this break, a few new dead-ball ideas should be near the top of the list.
Reassess performance programme for remaining Liverpool players
Something is not right at Liverpool at the moment. After a relatively manageable injury list for most of the campaign, players have started dropping like flies.
Many of them will be around the AXA Training Centre while their teammates are off on duty, and work needs to be done to figure out why this rise in injuries has occurred. Liverpool already have a small squad, so they need to do everything possible to prevent any more absences between now and the end of May.
It might seem obvious, and a rather naive suggestion to put to a world-class performance team, but they must be looking at each other right now and wondering where it’s all going wrong. They have two weeks to work on a solution.
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Liverpool should extend Dominik Szoboszlai’s contract
This one is not directly about rescuing Liverpool’s season, but it could still have a positive effect at a key moment. The Hungarian’s current deal at Anfield runs until 2028, meaning he now has a little over two years left, and Liverpool have already opened talks with Szoboszlai over an extension.
Rewarding him now would feel fully deserved given how important he has been, and it would also send a message that performances at a sustained level are justly rewarded.
There is a psychological benefit too: backing your best performer can galvanise him for the run-in, while also putting pressure on others. If Alexis Mac Allister wants similar treatment, he needs to raise his level. Curtis Jones should be thinking the same way.
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