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The pressure may be rising on Arne Slot at Liverpool, but it seems Richard Hughes has already made it clear that he sees the Dutchman as the ideal man to lead the club through its current crisis.
The Reds remain in a dismal slump after being knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Crystal Palace on Wednesday. The 3-0 defeat at Anfield was Liverpool’s sixth loss in its last seven games - a run that has also featured four straight Premier League defeats.
Slot is facing serious questions over his decision to pick a weakened squad against Palace, with Milos Kerkez having been the only player to keep his place in the side following the weekend’s defeat to Brentford, while there were no first-team players named on the bench.
The Liverpool boss has been taunted with cries of ‘you’re getting sacked in the morning’ by rival fans in recent games, while some pundits have suggested he might not see out the rest of 2025 if results continue to go against him.
Slot’s position though is said to be secure, with FSG unlikely to pull the trigger so soon on a head coach that won the league title just a matter of months ago.
Sporting director Hughes will of course have a big say in any decision that is made on Slot’s future, and the Scot has already made his feelings on Liverpool’s boss perfectly clear.
Detailing a private chat he had with Hughes, former Reds captain Jamie Redknapp said back in May: "When you say they have no major signings, the major signing was the manager.
"I spoke to Richard Hughes about this and I said, 'why Arne Slot?'
"He said, 'because everything pointed towards a man that could handle that big club mentality, you have to not just manage the team but you have to manage expectations. You have to be calm about managing this club'.
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"I think the way that he has done that has been absolutely phenomenal. He's a super cool guy.
"When [Jose] Mourinho came in, he was the special one. This guy is the cool one. He doesn't get flustered."
Despite those comments, Redknapp is among the pundits to have criticized Slot following Wednesday’s defeat, having questioned his decision to play such a weakened squad against Palace.
The Liverpool boss now faces a tough run of fixtures as the Reds look to turn their form around, with an in-form Aston Villa side heading to Anfield on Saturday before games against Real Madrid and Manchester City ahead of the November international break.
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