Alan Shearer and Micah Richards have both backed Arne Slot to continue as Liverpool head coach into next season, despite the Reds’ bitterly disappointing 2025/26 campaign.
The 3-2 loss to arch-rivals Manchester United on Sunday was LFC’s 19th defeat of the season in all competitions (including penalty shootouts), more than twice as many games as they lost in 2024/25 and comprising 35.2% of all matches played this term.
The head coach has come under serious scrutiny over the past few months, with Danny Murphy among those who’ve called for FSG to make a change in the dugout, but two of his fellow BBC pundits would like to see the Anfield hierarchy sticking with the Dutchman.
On the latest episode of The Rest Is Football, which was recorded after the game at Old Trafford yesterday, Gary Lineker asked Shearer and Richards if they think Slot will remain in charge for next term.
The ex-Newcastle striker replied: “I think so. What he did last season in winning the league, manager of the season – I guess with the issues and the problems they’ve had at Liverpool this year, then yeah I do. If it was my choice, then I would have him as manager.”
Richards agreed, saying: “I would still have him. They’re in the Champions League positions, [won the] Premier League last season.
“I think where the scrutiny comes is that the signings haven’t worked. Isak’s been injured. Wirtz has not been at the level that we all expected. Frimpong – is he a right winger or a right-back? Kerkez has been a shadow of the player he was at Bournemouth.
“Liverpool, all in all, are too slow. They’re too passive. They’re too easy to play against. What you normally associate Liverpool with is being aggressive and hard to beat, especially under [Jurgen] Klopp, and they’re none of those things. I’d like to see the manager get a chance to change that.”
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Although the Reds are still likely to qualify for the Champions League despite yesterday’s result, the debate over Slot’s future will continue going into the summer, with his team falling way short of pre-season expectations.
Daniel Sturridge made the damning comment after the loss to Man United that Liverpool still don’t have a discernible ‘identity’ after two years under their current head coach, in contrast to how they forged a clear style of play under Klopp within a few months of his appointment in 2015.
The paradox is that, when we last visited Old Trafford in September 2024, it was only three games into Slot’s tenure, and yet LFC were so much more cohesive, fluid and – crucially – determined than they were on Sunday.
The case will be made that the 47-year-old was benefitting from what Klopp had bequeathed to him, although there were still some nuanced tweaks which hinted at what was to come last season. Yesterday, even allowing for several high-profile injury absences, the Reds were unacceptably submissive in the first half in particular.
We don’t want Liverpool to become a ‘revolving door’ club who jettison managers/head coaches with frivolity, but even three wins to finish out this campaign would do little to quell the scrutiny surrounding the Dutchman, and he surely realises it.
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From rivals and non fans? They would have laughed at our every draws and losses. Stop becoming a nation laughing stock. The axe has to drop.
You have to put everything this season into context. We’ve lost 19 games this season in all competitions, two more and its 100 years since we’ve been this bad.
You normally find that former players come pundits don’t like saying that a manager needs to be sacked. Although they never hold back on players.
We are in a doom loop under slot, the same basic mistakes, and the manager doesn’t know how to solve it. Liverpool fans now saying we are the next spurs if slot stays next season.
Then there’s letting players go out with their families on holiday when they on the training ground trying to improve the defence.
Even steve nicol yesterday for the first time yesterday admitted that Liverpool look lost under slot.
What else can you say, FSG won’t budge. Shearer on match of the day analysis of comic defending by Liverpool, yet backs the manager. Some of the defending against United you’ll see better in the non league.
Slot has turned Liverpool into a Dutch team trying to play total football, he’s ignored what is vital for the premier league, strength, physicality, set piece organisation and how to deal with the counter attack when you play possession football.
If FSG carry on and neglect Liverpool football club we are well on the way to becoming the next spurs.
Terminal decline awaits, under charlatan owners FSG
Just look at what those supporting Slot said:
“… too slow. They’re too passive. They’re too easy to play against.”
That’s poor management! These players who were brought in are under-performing, and they think the best thing is to allow him to just bring in more money? This isn’t an FSG issue. They spent PLENTY of money after winning the EPL. This is simply a manager that can’t get good players to even play bang-average.
Micah Richards and Alan Shearer never loved Liverpool, they want to see it continually embarrassed. Keep Arne Slot you are going back to the pre Klopp Liverpool, that one is assured. Arne Slot just does not have what it takes to lift Liverpool to greater heights. He also has a bad attitude towards players, he must go.
If you have eyes to see .you won’t back slot to coach lfc by now honestly I have never seen lfc better under slot though they won the league. Most teams were weak last season. The way lfc plays is not what am seeing under klop since 2006
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