So, it turns out Liverpool fans can find fault with their title-winning stars after all. Well, at least some can.
Social media platforms aren’t always the best judge of a fanbase’s collective view, with the rancour and outrage seen online rarely replicated in the real world, although that was indeed the case regarding the reaction to Trent Alexander-Arnold’s departure. Likewise, the response to Liverpool’s defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion has stirred up some negative sentiment among a group of supporters who have not endured many defeats since Arne Slot’s arrival last summer.
They’ve grown used to winning; there’s an expectation now that Liverpool will perform to an elite level in almost every game. That hasn’t been the case of late, though.
The squad has spent more time in bars and on beaches than the training pitch in recent weeks. The focus has switched from elite-level performance to elite-level celebrations.
In the three games since Liverpool secured the title, it has managed to pick up just a solitary point, losing as many in the three matches since securing the title against Tottenham Hotspur as it did in the previous 33.
To say that Liverpool and the players have taken their foot off the gas is an understatement. Slot hasn’t even tried to hide it. Before Liverpool’s four post-title matches, the head coach said an assessment of the points tally from the first 34 matches, not the full 38-game campaign, would provide a more accurate reflection of the Reds’ season.
He prefaced an answer in last Friday’s press conference by saying: “Did you see me this week on social media?” – in reference to his much-publicized trip to Ibiza. The Dutchman went on to admit that transfer strategy is dominating his thoughts at present, more so than pre-match preparation.
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“A larger part now is already, indeed, my thoughts are into next season more than it would have been if this game of Monday and next week against Palace had been decisive for us to either finish top five or win the league or whatever we had to do.”
That explains the decision to allow his players to enjoy trips abroad in each of the last two weeks – the first with families and the second as a team. Meanwhile, Alexander-Arnold’s self-indulgent farewell bash on Friday was ill-advised at best.
Slot’s choice to rotate the squad, handing starts to Jarell Quansah, Wataru Endo, Harvey Elliott, Federico Chiesa, and the remaining cast of Liverpool fringe players has also fed into the narrative that all this doesn’t really matter.
It’s no surprise that results have suffered. So much so that Liverpool has become the first team to be crowned champions and fail to win any of its next three matches.
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Those looking to find fault with the way the team has so clearly let its standards drop are not short of stimuli. Ex-Red John Aldridge is among them, writing on X: “I’m not a happy bunny having got 1 point from the last 3 games and 9 goals against. It hurts.
“I understand Arnes reasons but respect that we are LFC. I hope that it shows the weakness to harden up for next season logically.”
And yet, what alternative did the head coach have? Continue to play the same players and deny those who have watched from the sidelines the chance to impress? Opting to rest Virgil van Dijk at Brighton caused some frustration, but if Slot can’t pair Quansah and Ibrahima Konate together now, when can he?
There was always going to be an inevitable drop-off after the title was clinched. Liverpool isn’t the first side to experience that natural response and won’t be the last. Slot apologists may also suggest performances haven’t been quite as poor as social media would have you believe. Liverpool has competed with three top-eight sides, drawing against Arsenal and then losing narrowly to Brighton in a performance full of positives.
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If there is criticism to be labelled against Slot, it is perhaps that his blunt appraisal of how meaningless the final four matches are could have been dulled down, that his apathy for the Premier League victory lap didn’t need to be so overt. Did the players really need two trips abroad? Was Ibizia and a visit to Wayne Lineker’s nightclub really the best choice?
The other element in this bizarre conclusion to the season is transfers. Liverpool’s position as champions has allowed it to steal a march on the competition. With a move for Jeremie Frimpong to be confirmed imminently, Liverpool tentatively exploring a deal for Florian Wirtz and reports suggest talks are under way with Milos Kerkez, FSG is making the most of its head start.
Even with the underwhelming end to the campaign, Liverpool will head into the market as the most attractive English prospect for would-be signings. Arsenal’s Champions League stutter and Manchester City’s FA Cup final hiccup means the Reds’ main rivals will end the season without silverware and with questions surrounding the long-term direction of both clubs.
That can’t be said of Liverpool, even if it may have killed off any momentum in between this season and next.
Ultimately, the ends will justify the means. With the trips, rotation and transfer focus, Slot is already prioritizing next season, aiming to ensure the team begins the campaign in the optimum position.
If he does so and Liverpool starts 2025/26 with the strut of a reigning champion, the final four games of this season will be quickly forgotten.
