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Liverpool retains 100 per cent faith in Arne Slot. Unlike at other clubs, where briefings to that effect can spell the kiss of death, it rings true at Anfield.
After all, Slot delivered the Premier League title to Liverpool just a few short months ago. You can argue about how much of that success was down to the legacy of Jurgen Klopp, but the colossal status of his predecessor undoubtedly came with challenges of its own for the Dutchman too.
If nothing else, Slot has earned the time to try and turn things around. Michael Edwards will not be dusting off his managerial longlist just yet.
But such a list did exist. Liverpool, of course, did extensive due diligence before deciding on Slot as the right man to replace Klopp.
And while that decision looked inspired last season, the current state of affairs means it is at least more interesting than before to reflect on some of the alternative realities, if only as a thought exercise. The Daily Mail has cited six managers who were in contention at the same time as Slot.
Some of these candidates were covered extensively at the time, not least Ruben Amorim. The former Sporting boss currently has Man Utd marginally above Liverpool in the standings, although the Reds are not yet anywhere near the point of feeling any regret where the Portuguese coach is concerned.
Admiration for Roberto De Zerbi was also public knowledge already. But his combustible temparament does not seem like a good fit at all at Liverpool, even if he is enjoying some success with Marseille at the moment.
Beyond that, it's been revealed that Liverpool was looking at some slightly more left-field names. Sebastian Hoeness of Stuttgart, Michel of Girona, Ernesto Valverde of Athletic Club, and Luciano Spalletti (Italy at the time, now Juventus) all made it to the longlist to replace Klopp.
These are hardly non-entities, least of all the experienced Spalletti and Valverde. But they are names that remained reasonably shielded from the public eye in the hunt that ultimately led to Slot.
It's impossible to say with any certainty how any of them would have fared at Liverpool as heirs to Klopp. But Michel in particular has seen his stock fall dramatically since the Reds conducted their initial search.
Girona finished in a remarkable third place in 2023/24, firing Michel to prominence. But it could only manage 16th last season, and looks set for another relegation dogfight in this campaign.
Even with the multi-club links to Man City, this still represents little more than a reversion to the norm when you consider Girona's stature and spending relative to La Liga rivals. But the allure of Michel is undoubtedly reduced.
It's not a totally different story for Hoeness. He led Stuttgart to second in 2023/24, but could only back that up with ninth in last season's Bundesliga standings.
However, Stuttgart did claim the DFB-Pokal. And Hoeness has his side in fourth in the current campaign, so he's still one on whom a big club might consider rolling the dice.
As for Spalletti, he's new at Juventus following the dismissal of Igor Tudor. So Liverpool couldn't revisit that name just yet even if it was inclined to do so, although it will certainly be interesting to see how he gets on at the sleeping Italian giant.
For his part, Valverde has probably sustained his reputation the most in the last couple of years, advancing in Europe with Athletic Club while consistently remaining at the business end of the La Liga table. But at 61, chances of a move to Anfield are probably decreasing with each passing year.
And for now, it is very much all academic. And if anything, going through the list only serves to underline why Slot deserves more time before his job even comes under any significant pressure.
The list is full of managers whose fortunes and reputations have ebbed and flowed, even in the time since Liverpool picked Slot as Klopp's heir. Ultimately, only a select few teams in the world are even vaguely immune from swings in performances and results — and in those rare cases, the manager is only one part of a bigger equation.
Ultimately, Slot surpassed all expectations at Liverpool last season. And while recent results mean he will have to accept increased noise, the Anfield high-ups will not yet have seen anything to make them regret their choice.
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