Arne Slot’s credit melts like snow in the sun. Reigning champion, the Dutch manager is experiencing a nightmarish autumn on the banks of the Mersey. The slap received at home against Nottingham Forest (0-3) plunged the Reds into a deep crisis: an eleventh place unworthy of their standing and above all six defeats in the last seven championship matches. Despite a colossal investment of more than 400 million pounds this summer to strengthen the workforce, the mayonnaise no longer holds. Klopp’s successor seems to have lost the formula, and in the Anfield stands, nostalgia for the “Normal One” is starting to be heard loudly.
Uli Hoeness spills the beans?
It is in this deleterious climate that an influential voice in German football threw a wrench into the pond. Uli Hoeness, the honorary president of Bayern Munich, does not believe for a second that JĂĽrgen Klopp will remain forever in his leadership costume at Red Bull. “I can’t imagine him traveling around the world and going to New York to supervise teams forever,” he blurted. For Hoeness, Klopp’s place is on a bench, not in an office. A statement that resonates loudly as bookmakers already place the German as the big favorite to take over the position if Slot were to jump.
Klopp himself has never closed the door to a return, however posing a non-negotiable condition in the past: in England, it will be Liverpool or nothing. After almost a year away from the field, the mental wear and tear that motivated his departure may have faded. The scenario of a return as a savior to turn around a team he built from A to Z becomes
“theoretically possible”, as he himself admitted. The position of “Global Head of Soccer” could well be just a golden interlude before diving back into the adrenaline of the Premier League.
Neville and Lawrenson try to put out the fire
However, not everyone is calling for Arne Slot’s head. Gary Neville considers the idea of ​​sacking a coach who has just spent 450 million “ridiculous”. For the former Mancunian, Slot is going through a “very bad patch” but deserves time to integrate his recruits. Same story with legend Mark Lawrenson, who assures that there is “no doubt” about the fact that the Batavian will remain in office. Will this media support be enough to calm a management which sees the title flying away, already 11 points behind Arsenal?
The ax could fall faster than expected. The Champions League match this Wednesday against PSV Eindhoven looks like a final for Arne Slot. A new poor performance could seal his fate. If the management of the Reds decides to activate the ejection seat, JĂĽrgen Klopp’s number will undoubtedly be the first dialed. And this time, he might just pick up.
