Arne Slot has weakened his position further by firing a needless dig at ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp en route to his likely sacking before next season.
In recent weeks, it has looked increasingly inevitable that Slot is on borrowed time at Liverpool, with reports suggesting that club chiefs have already made up their minds on replacing him.
Slot has had credit in the bank after helping Liverpool to win their 20th Premier League title last season. Still, patience appears to be wearing thin, and he is not helping himself with his erratic outbursts in press conferences.
With Xabi Alonso available, the door has opened for Liverpool to finally appoint their first-choice Klopp replacement, while Slot continues to alienate himself with his poor comments and decision-making.
On Tuesday night, Liverpool bounced back from having their unconvincing unbeaten run ended by AFC Bournemouth, beating Qarabag 6-0 to book a spot in the last 16 of the Champions League.
READ: Man Utd, Liverpool stars among five big names who need a move before the deadline
Despite this, Slot has still managed to come away from Tuesday evening with a bad smell as he needlessly fired a dig at Klopp, with his poor attempt to defend him surely doing more damage than good as he continues to lose backing from supporters.
“We are happy that we are going straight away to the last 16, especially because it’s only two years ago that we were playing Europa League and we went out in the quarter-finals against Atalanta,” Slot said post-match.
“So, two seasons in a row now being in the last 16, and last season we were very hungry for more and we will definitely be hungry for more this season as well.”
Liverpool also suffered a fresh injury blow on Tuesday, with summer signing Jeremie Frimpong forced off with a groin injury.
With Conor Bradley also unavailable, it was put to Slot that Liverpool could enter the market for a new right-back, but he looked to pour water on these claims.
“We as a club always make decisions, as we at least make smart decisions,” Slot said in response to Frimpong’s injury.
MORE ON LIVERPOOL ON F365
* Tottenham transfer ‘will get done’ for Liverpool star as expert reveals ‘key factor’
* Arsenal star Rice ‘exactly what Liverpool need’ as Carragher admits Reds transfer regret: ‘Oh, God…’
* Mood rankings: Misery loves company with Leeds one of only four clubs declared ‘happy’
“So we not only look at the short term, we also look at the long term. Longer term, that’s why we sign young players as well. (We sign) very good players, but young ones that can still develop. Now we can see the development with a few.
“And it always depends on, are there players available that we think can help us? And if there are, can we afford them? And will this also be helpful for the longer term future, because our players come back from injury as well.
“I just said that we don’t have a squad where we have four right-backs and 12 midfielders and three or four No.9s. That’s not how it works over here. So we have to do smart things for the near future, but also for the longer future. Let’s first see how Jeremie is.
“Maybe he’s not able to play Saturday, but maybe he’s able to play one or two days later. We’re now going to a schedule with one game a week. So that would usually mean less injuries.”
