Sources: Liverpool board ‘seriously question’ Arne Slot’s position
The Liverpool board are set to place a “serious question mark” over Arne Slot’s future if they fail to qualify for the Champions League, sources have told Football Insider.
The Reds’ minimum expectation for this season was a top-four finish after a heavy summer spend, and failure to secure Champions League football next term would provide a huge financial blow.
Slot is now under growing pressure from the Liverpool fanbase amid a poor run of form extending back to the autumn, but sources say that he will be given until the end of the season before his long-term future will be re-evaluated.
The Merseysiders are currently outside the top four by five points after their late defeat to Manchester City on Sunday, but it is understood that Slot still has plenty of credit in the bank after leading them to the Premier League title last term.
Liverpool need Champions League football after huge wage reveal
Former Everton and Aston Villa chief executive Keith Wyness recently told Football Insider that Liverpool’s owners have a right to expect Champions League football as a minimum after their investment in the squad.
The Anfield outfit shelled out an astonishing £446million on new players in the summer, with the duo of Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz both arriving for fees well above the £100m mark.
Figures from Deloitte’s money league showed a huge increase in Liverpool’s wage bill at the end of 2025, as their annual bill has climbed to an eye-watering £421m.
That has seen them overtake Manchester City as the biggest spenders in the Premier League when it comes to wages, but it also coincided with their turnover getting a boost after their title win.
However, if Liverpool were to miss out on Champions League qualification and endure a trophyless season, both of which are serious possibilities, then that could plummet.
Slot’s remit at the start of the season was to fight as hard as possible to try and defend the club’s crown, but he is now in danger of breaking through their expectations at the other end of the scale, and it could ultimately cost him his job.
The Reds could see success with Dominik Szoboszlai appeal
Former PGMOL chief Keith Hackett exclusively told Football Insider on Monday that Liverpool could be successful if they appeal Dominik Szoboszlai’s red card in their defeat to Manchester City.
The Hungarian was sent off for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity by pulling Erling Haaland, even though the ball ended up in the Liverpool net anyway just seconds later.
The goal was disallowed and Szoboszlai was sent off, but Hackett feels that the Reds may have grounds for a potentially successful appeal.
Hackett feels that referee Craig Pawson played the advantage rule after the initial foul, despite making no clear signal of this on the pitch.
If that were the case from Pawson, then a yellow card should have been issued rather than a straight red, and Hackett feels that Liverpool should look to argue that case to try and get the ban overturned.