Arne Slot’s future remains under scrutiny, and even a strong ending to the season may not dispel the concerns for many Liverpool fans.
The Dutchman has lost a lot of trust after a difficult campaign. Xabi Alonso has become the popular choice among supporters looking for change, especially with the former Liverpool midfielder now being linked with Chelsea.
But it seems the club have reached a firm conclusion on that debate. For all the noise around Alonso, Liverpool still rate Slot more highly.
If Xabi Alonso goes to Chelsea, who should be Liverpool’s next manager?
Liverpool rate Arne Slot more than Xabi Alonso
FSG have been steadfast in their support of Slot since bringing him to Anfield.
That is not especially surprising. He won the Premier League last season, and the club clearly give him a lot of credit for that achievement.
Even now, with all the speculation around the Dutchman’s future, Liverpool have not made contact with Alonso.
According to Miguel Delaney in his Inside Football newsletter, there is a clear reason for that. Liverpool still believe Slot is the better coach.
Delaney says the club’s ownership have delegated significant power to the group around Michael Edwards, and that Slot continues to come out better than Alonso on their medium to long-term analytics.
The current Liverpool manager is said to rate ‘significantly better’. They believe Alonso is not better than Slot based on their data, and so there is no urgency to stop the Spaniard from finding another club.
Liverpool believe this season has been unusually ‘disrupted’. They also feel the shift from Jurgen Klopp’s high-intensity football to Slot’s broader, lower-intensity approach was always going to require adaptation.
That will not satisfy everyone.
Supporter anger is real, and some of the performances this season have been nowhere near acceptable. But there is now too much evidence to ignore about where Liverpool stand.
The Alonso argument may continue among fans, but it does not appear to be gaining traction inside the club. Like it or not, all signs point to Slot being in charge next season.
- READ MORE: The key reason why Liverpool need to let Xabi Alonso join Chelsea as Arne Slot similarity shows
Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox
