Inside Liverpool's season of pain
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Liverpool's big summer analysedMo Salah's scathing Liverpool assessmentLiverpool news & transfers 🔴 | Liverpool fixtures & resultsBack then, Slot had been in the thick of the celebrations - his name chanted repeatedly by the Kop as he raised the Premier League trophy to the heavens. Image: Liverpool fans pay tribute to former Reds and Wolves player Diogo Jota at Molineux As well as turning to the club's head of medicine and performance Jonathan Power and psychologist Lee Richardson, Liverpool brought in grief counsellors to ensure there was sufficient support."If you can't, if it's too much, there's no pressure on anyone," Slot told his players when training restarted.
Image: Hugo Ekitike was Liverpool's brightest summer signing before suffering a season-ending Achilles injury against PSG There's a sense internally that Wirtz's adaptation to English football was made tougher by his arrival at a time when the Premier League was becoming more physical, more direct and more about set-plays. Jones told Irish broadcaster RTE: "We're in the s*** and it needs to change." Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Former Liverpool midfielder Graeme Souness expresses his 'disappointment' in Mohamed Salah's exit at Liverpool, saying the Egyptian forward should've left the club more 'gracefully' In a bid to make Liverpool more compact out of possession, Slot responded by dropping Salah, who had previously started every league game under the Dutchman.
The club's hierarchy believes Slot handled a difficult situation with dignity as he reintegrated Salah following his time away at the Africa Cup of Nations.But friction remained and it was no surprise when it was announced in March that Salah would leave at the end of the season with Liverpool agreeing to his request to effectively rip up the final year of his contract.Salah didn't mention Slot in his social media post following the wretched 4-2 defeat at Aston Villa earlier this month, but the insinuation was clear as he bemoaned the absence of "heavy metal football", a phrase synonymous with the Klopp era.Salah scored just 12 goals in 2025-26, compared to 34 a year earlier.Uninspiring playing style leaves Anfield unimpressedA largely uninspiring 13-game unbeaten run in all competitions was ended when Liverpool conceded another last-gasp winner at Bournemouth in late January.In making his team harder to beat, Slot also made them harder to watch. But there's also a confidence that those who arrived a year ago will make a much greater contribution next season.Slot has undoubtedly been hampered by circumstances beyond his control this season, but he's also failed to get the best out of the resources available to him.Sources in the Netherlands expect Etienne Reijnen to join Slot's backroom staff from Feyenoord, having initially been unable to make the move to Anfield two years ago as he couldn't get a work permit.His appointment would effectively confirm that Slot is staying put, but until there is any official confirmation, a degree of uncertainty remains.