Danny Murphy issues bold Arne Slot claim amid potential summer upheaval at Liverpool

Danny Murphy can’t see Arne Slot being given any say in a summer rebuild at Liverpool this year.

After romping to the Premier League title last season, the Reds haven’t come close to defending their crown, and the pressure has steadily mounted on the Dutchman.

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Liverpool have no chance of winning the top-flight, are struggling in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain, out of the FA Cup and didn’t win the Carabao Cup.

They are still likely to seal Champions League football with a fifth-place finish, but ahead of a huge summer, Murphy can’t see Slot still being in place.

Despite spending the best part of £450million last summer on players including Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, there appears to be another big summer on the horizon.

Mohamed Salah and Andrew Robertson have announced they will be departing as that famous Jurgen Klopp side starts to slowly be dismantled.

Curtis Jones, Ibrahima Konate, Joe Gomez and Alexis Mac Allister are among the players who face uncertain futures on Merseyside as well.

But for Murphy, it is over for Liverpool head coach Slot.

When asked by Simon Jordan if he feels Slot has reached the end of his time at Anfield, Murphy responded: “Yeah, I do.

“There are mitigating circumstances, but when the majority of Liverpool fans are on the same page, it is very difficult to come back from.

“I do feel for him because normally when you win a league, even if you have a bad season after, you get to go again, but it is the level of performance that’s really disgruntling the fans.”

Specifically on if Slot will be given the responsibility to reshape the squad, he said: “No chance. The hierarchy aren’t daft. They’re not stupid.

“Finishing fifth for Liverpool isn’t acceptable, irrelevant of the mitigating circumstances.

“They are nowhere near it and will probably only get fifth due to other teams falling below them.”

Not getting easier

Liverpool face Paris Saint-Germain in the second leg of their Champions League on Tuesday with the Reds trailing the defending champions 2-0 following the first leg in Paris.

It could have been so much worse for Liverpool as they were opened up several times at the Parc des Princes, and they also survived a penalty scare in the final moments after Konate pushed Nuno Mendes in the back inside Liverpool’s box.

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Anfield is known for famous comeback triumphs with Liverpool’s semi-final victory in 2018/19 against Barcelona which saw them overturn a 3-0 deficit to win 4-3 on aggregate still fresh in the memory.

But Murphy has zero optimism, adding: “There is no confidence at all as they got absolutely battered. You always want to believe with the history of Anfield can create this atmosphere that elevates players performances – we’ve seen it time and time again.

“The reality is this team looks short on confidence and energy. If you go after PSG really hard, which they are going to have to do, they tear you apart because they’ve got some wonderful players.

“I think the big thing is the level of performance and being in the game and showing some fight and grit and some determination. The fans will get behind that.

“There are a few selection headaches he’s got to make. The Rio Ngumoha decision is going to be big because fans are desperate to see him.

“But I’d be amazed if they turn it around.”

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Dare to dream

Slot has insisted that Liverpool can make it into the Champions League semi-finals.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, he said: “Remind me what the score was? It was 2-0. It felt completely different, but it was 2-0.

“Second of all, we’ve shown so many times this season in games we are able to get a great performance.

“We have also shown different things, I’m aware of that, but many of our games have been very good as well.

“The ones who have been with me the 18 months, 49 games we have scored two goals or more. They weren’t all against PSG, I know that, but the opponents are strong.

“There is a belief we can do special things tomorrow, but we have to be very very very special tomorrow, as we are playing against the European champions.

“It’s going to be very difficult but not impossible.”