Liverpool lost 1-4 to PSV Eindhoven, suffering three consecutive defeats by a margin of three goals, and have lost nine of their last 12 games.
Club legend Jamie Carragher opened up during a live broadcast, speaking for three minutes: “Liverpool is not a ‘sacking club’. Unlike almost every other club in Europe, here the manager is king – he gets time.”
“Liverpool have never sacked a manager who won the league title – never in history. They all left after several years or resigned. I can’t believe that after Liverpool’s home defeat to Nottingham Forest last weekend, when I spoke to some Reds fans, I actually heard people discussing the manager’s position.”
“Now these calls will only get louder. I’ve always been in the camp of keeping the manager... To be completely honest, I’m angry with the players. I’m really angry with them. But for any club’s manager, there comes a point I often talk about – the unsustainable stage. It almost feels like this can’t go on anymore.”
“Personally, I haven’t reached that point regarding the manager’s future, but I know many fans have reached breaking point.”
“What I think we’re seeing now is this: Liverpool under Klopp in 2018 started the journey to becoming a great team, then Slot took over, and now – seven or eight years later – among the key catalysts of Liverpool’s rise back then – Alisson, Van Dijk, and Salah – Alisson is now injury-prone and has seen his playing time drastically reduced. And if you look at Van Dijk now – he’s not the player he used to be.”
“Salah looks like his legs can’t keep up with the pace anymore. I don’t like criticizing them. And I think some of the criticism of their players this season has been too harsh.”
“When things aren’t going well for the team, you always expect the leaders in the squad to step up. To be honest, I’ve criticized Salah off the pitch – I wish he would come out for an interview tonight, talk to Liverpool fans about what the players plan to do, what’s really going on in the dressing room, and give the supporters hope that things will get better. But I don’t like picking on their on-field performances, because their achievements are absolutely legendary.”
“It’s just that their physical capabilities have simply caught up with them, especially Salah. Van Dijk can’t help other players now – he needs help himself. That just shows he’s now an ordinary center-back, like I was at a certain stage of my career. Maybe he’s no longer Superman, but their contributions to the club will last forever.”
“Looking at some other players: Can you step up? Can you only play well when they’re performing or when you’re carried by the key players? Their performances last season were extraordinary – the whole team enjoyed winning the league title, and everyone became a champion. That honor is in their resumes, which is great. But where are you when the key players are off their game? Where exactly are the other players?”
“That’s why I get annoyed when people talk about the manager – but a change is inevitable, and it might really happen. As for the players and their current performances, what I mean is, this is unacceptable for Liverpool Football Club.”
“Actually, I kind of thought this last season: If Liverpool want to win the highest honors, are some of them really worthy of this team? We saw their performances against Newcastle in the League Cup, and away to Paris Saint-Germain last season – those displays were really poor. They’ve been carried by some of the greatest players in the club’s history.”
“When Salah leaves, Van Dijk leaves, and Alisson leaves, what we’re seeing now might be a glimpse of Liverpool’s future.”
