Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner has seen his name thrust into the Liverpool spotlight in his homeland, while Arne Slot discussed Joe Gomez‘s chances for minutes.
A hopeful Joe Gomez selection hint vs. West Ham
You could be forgiven for thinking Gomez is not part of Liverpool’s squad anymore, such is the lack of action he is seeing this season – 238 minutes, to be exact.
An issue with his knee has not helped matters of late, but Slot told reporters on Thursday that “starting a game is definitely a possibility.”
He said: “[Gomez is] close [to minutes], he could have been involved yesterday [vs. PSV] in terms of minutes. But when we are 2-1 down or 3-1 down, I tend to make offensive substitutes.
“Him starting a game is definitely a possibility, but Konate didn’t train two days before the [PSV] game, he was a bit of a liability two days before.
“And then if you don’t have that many defenders to start with, two players that might not be able to play the whole 90 is kind of a risk as well.
“So I decided to keep him [in reserve] if Ibou was injured and not to have to make two substitutions, because then I probably would have ended up with one or two [fit] defenders.”
Konate has shown little to retain his place but it may be that Gomez is better off at right-back so we do not have to see a midfielder in that position, but is that hopeful thinking?
Oliver Glasner pushed into LFC headlines
* Watch Arne Slot‘s pre-West Ham press conference on our YouTube channel here
• Alisson is expected to start against West Ham, while Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike could both also be included in the squad as Slot offered a new injury update
• There have been fresh talks between Slot and Liverpool’s hierarchy after the PSV defeat, with Liverpool sources maintaining that the head coach retains FSG’s backing – a lot hinges on Sunday, surely
• Jamie Carragher accused Slot of committing a “sackable offence” in continuing to select Ibrahima Konate. It’s a question we’re all still asking
• Members of the Dutch media claimed ‘There is every reason to fire’ Slot after Wednesday’s showing. We know they are a blunt bunch, and their reports proved it
• Sky Sports Austria are trying to catch bait by naming Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner as a potential next boss for Liverpool, saying they “imagine he may receive a call soon.” You can’t say they wouldn’t be wrong!
Should Liverpool sack Arne Slot?
It is the question many are asking and we had a debate on the very topic, and the views were understandably mixed:
MATT: Yes. You can’t expect to be Liverpool manager if you lose nine games in 12 games (and 14 out of 30 – which shows this isn’t a short-term thing).
We’ve seen zero evidence that he knows how to turn it around, the same issues have been apparent without being dealt with. He’s admitted his team can’t defend against long balls and set pieces, yet PSV played out from the back and it was like a training match against a youth team for them.
JOANNA: As much as you wish it wasn’t coming to this, the answer is yes.
The players did not look like they were playing for him anymore, they appear just as confused as we all are (and Slot too) about what needs to be done and what the plan might be.
SAM: No, but perhaps I am in denial. I have always liked how Liverpool have been a club that haven’t rushed to sack managers, though I can understand why some supporters have reached that point.
READ: Should Liverpool sack Arne Slot?
Elsewhere in the football world today
• Newcastle are to complain over the “unacceptable treatment” their fans experienced at Marseille, with concerns to be raised to UEFA. Nothing ever changes in France, does it? Liverpool head there in January (NUFC)
• Joshua Kimmich dismissed any notion that Arsenal were Bayern Munich’s toughest opponent this season after their defeat, “as they rely on set-pieces” and “love to play long balls” – a fair assessment! (TNT Sports Brasil)
• Thomas Frank has defended Slot amid the mounting pressure, saying he will “1,000 percent find a way out of that.” We can only admire his optimism
Liverpool FC: On this day
In a nod to how the feeling at a club can quickly change, it was a year ago that Liverpool beat Real Madrid 2-0 at Anfield in the Champions League.
They received similar treatment only weeks ago but it came amid a poor run of results, while last year’s victory marked a significant period in Arne Slot‘s debut season.
Alexis Mac Allister opened the scoring before Caoimhin Kelleher saved a penalty from Kylian Mbappe, with Cody Gakpo making sure of the result after Mo Salah missed a spot kick.
Does anyone wonder if the PSG result would’ve been different if Kelleher was in for the shootout?