Five matches, 16 days, a season to save: Slot’s Liverpool vision faces a defining moment

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Those pillars of Klopp’s reign are weakening under Arne Slot and April may determine whether they are left standing at all.Two cup quarter-finals in succession should signal a season on the right track for Liverpool; showpiece occasions such as Manchester City in the FA Cup on Saturday and Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Wednesday whetting the appetite for what May could have in store.It could yet bring redemption to a miserable title defence, with Mohamed Salah eyeing the exit a legend deserves and Dominik Szoboszlai on a mission to haul Liverpool to a Champions League final in his native Hungary.But where recently there was a conviction that anything is achievable, not only under Klopp but in Slot’s title-winning debut season, Liverpool’s inconsistent form does nothing to inspire confidence for the demanding cup assignments. He has questioned Liverpool’s ability to cope with three games a week all season and his fears were realised by another defeat, Liverpool’s 10th of the Premier League campaign, that added weight to criticism of fitness levels, efficiency in front of goal and organisation.The same was true of their defeat by bottom-placed Wolves and in the home draw against Tottenham, a result that was bad at the time, but looks embarrassing with hindsight on Igor Tudor’s short, ill-judged tenure.There is no imminent threat to Slot’s position.

Photograph: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC/Getty ImagesTheir resolve, however, will be severely tested should Liverpool’s decline be exposed by City and PSG and the team fail to secure Champions League qualification. What may rescue the 47-year-old in the final reckoning is what has worked against him from day one: the form and fitness of Alexander Isak.The most expensive piece of Liverpool’s near-£450m recruitment drive last summer – “But we’ve sold £300m since I’ve been here,” a Dutchman screams in the distance – was bought to provide the penetration Slot felt his team lacked towards the end of last season and establish a devastating rapport with Florian Wirtz.

It would reflect badly on the recruitment of Hughes and Michael Edwards, FSG’s chief executive of football, to sack Slot without seeing whether their grand plan of last summer can come to fruition.Slot has a disillusioned fanbase to placate, starting with the visit to a City team buoyant after their League Cup final victory over Arsenal.There were only positives to Klopp’s return. Liverpool’s official charity will use the funds to develop employability programmes across the city region and internationally.The adoration for Liverpool’s former manager inadvertently brought into focus the frostiness towards Slot, less than a year after he guided the club to a record‑equalling 20th league title.That triumph exceeded all expectations in the aftermath of Klopp’s exit, although expectations change when reigning champions spends almost £450m on fresh talent and Liverpool have fallen short all season.