Liverpool’s recent struggles have turned the temperature up around Arne Slot, with every poor result adding to the noise.
It was always going to be a challenge to follow a figure as influential as Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool. Slot did as well as one could have imagined last season, but this term, the wheels have come off.
Performances, results and the mood around the club all matter, and right now there is growing pressure as supporters look for signs that things are moving in the right direction. In the absence of that encouragement, Liverpool fans are losing faith in Slot.
Just how bad do you want Arne Slot gone? 😬
That is why Danny Murphy’s latest claim will raise eyebrows among fans, with the former Reds midfielder suggesting Slot will not be able to recover once the fan base has turned.
Danny Murphy makes grim Liverpool point over Arne Slot
Speaking about the situation on talkSPORT, Murphy said: “So the fan base for the first time in a long, long time has turned and I was saying this the other day and the final point is that as a Liverpool supporter growing up and a player there, I don’t remember, I can’t think of a time where a manager has lost the fan base and turned it round.
“I just don’t remember it happening because the Liverpool fans are good at it. They don’t tend to turn, but when they do, I’ve never seen anyone get it back.
“So, it feels a little like it’s inevitable what’s coming now.”
It is a brutal assessment, but it gets to the heart of the issue. At Liverpool, supporters usually stay behind the manager for as long as there is belief in the direction of travel. Once that belief starts to disappear, it’s nigh-impossible to get back.
Murphy’s point is not just about results. It is about trust. If fans no longer believe Slot can lift the team, then every team selection, every substitution and every setback will be judged even more harshly.
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The most damaging part of Murphy’s argument is that it points to something deeper than a bad run of form. Liverpool can survive poor results for a spell, but it becomes much harder when belief in the manager starts to go.
With Liverpool in the midst of a top-five race and trying to stay afloat in the FA Cup and in Europe, more of the same won’t be tolerated.
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That is what makes the coming weeks so important. Slot does not just need wins, he needs a response that reconnects the team with the crowd. A sharper edge, clearer identity and stronger performances would at least give supporters something to hold onto.
Because if Murphy is right, and the fan base has truly turned, then this may already feel like a story heading in only one direction.
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