Liverpool Discussions

05 Mar 2026 01:09:02
I'll give credit to Slot for calling out time wasting the last couple of seasons, probably more so this season. Then last week he comes out and says the football being played this season in the PL is, "not a joy to watch", and his "football heart doesn't like" the emphasis on set-pieces this season. I must say I've come to really dislike those two hyphenated words.

Tonight Hurzeler, before and after the game, slammed Arsenal and their tactics. They had 40% possession after taking an early lead, which is unbelievable for a team that likes to dominate the ball. Last week Trossard down 3 times, tonight the keeper.

I disagree w Hurzeler when he says it's hard for the refs. It is to some extent but they blow the whistle as soon as someone falls down. To me, the refs are the biggest problem as they are the ones allowing the cheating, time-wasting, "gamesmanship, " etc. The players are just taking advantage of the totally incompetent referees.

Arsenal won't care if they go on to win the league, of course. But, I get the sense that something will be done by PGMOL if things continue as they are. I'd upgrade diving to a straight red, and I'd include minimal contact in that, as well as players purposely initiatiating contact then falling down. We might have a few games that finish w 14-15 players on the pitch initially, but they'd soon get the message.

05 Mar 2026 03:16:58
I think the issue is higher up than the refs. If it stopped with the refs, we would see a bit of variety in decision making; we would see the odd ref being strict by comparison, carding lads regularly for driving, play-acting, and time-wasting.

We're not really seeing that. It's universally poor, which suggests to me that the issue lies in the instructions being sent down from the higher-ups.

05 Mar 2026 04:40:50
Yep, the refs are def under marching orders. But, the levels of inconsistency in their decision making demonstrates how woefully incompetent they are too. PGMOL has to carry the can ultimately for the awful standards of officiating.

05 Mar 2026 10:04:37
There are definitely inconsistencies, but Arsenal have actually made a game plan of exploiting it.

For example, Gabriel throwing himself to the ground under minimal contact gets Spurs' goal disallowed. VVD staying on his feet after the same kind of shove on Tuesday, and we concede a goal.

I've said before, we generally don't take advantage of the poor refereeing enough. There's always instances, of course, but in general the majority of our players try to stay on their feet. It's a good thing, but a bad thing too, as other teams are getting an advantage that we are not.

With Arsenal, it doesn't matter which player gets touched. They are hitting the deck every time. You couldn't say which player is worst for doing it, because they all do it equally, even the likes of Lewis-Skelly, who's fresh out of the academy, so it's obviously a tactic that's trained into them. I watched 10 minutes of their game last night. Trossard dived twice, Havertz dived in the box under minimal contact, and Gabriel fell over after Welbeck brushed his shoulder.

The only decision they didn't get was the pen for Havertz, but he should've been booked and wasn't, so he'll keep trying because there's no consequence.

It was noticeable that when Moyse took over at Everton, the first thing they did was start going to ground easily, which then gave them a foothold in the game and set pieces to exploit, and their results improved. It works.

I've also said referees don't understand the game. For someone who's played the game, you know when someone is fouled and when they're cheating. The refs just don't see it.

Now, the problem is that it's become an integral part of the game, so everyone will claim for free kicks under little or no contact because they've seen other teams get the decisions regularly. It would take a huge shift in the referees' mentality and ability to turn it around.

04 Mar 2026 22:26:19
Fair play to 10 men Newcastle. Even when the powers that be are trying to hand it to United on a plate they still make a meal of it.

05 Mar 2026 01:32:39
I think if Newcastle just played every game with 10 players, they'd be top 4 certs and maybe title contenders. On a more serious note, does anyone want to finish 3rd-5th?

05 Mar 2026 09:39:25
I spoke about Arsenal the other day, and the red cards that they haven't received this season. But for United to have an opposition player sent off, 2 games in a row, is something else.

Especially since both decisions are so unbelievably harsh on the opposition teams.

04 Mar 2026 21:45:14
Hi eds,

Quick question of opinion.

Do you suspect significant changes in the squad next year.

If we don't get champions league would you expect a few more gambles.

Reading media and you'd believe we are the poorest club in the world and no champions league means were exploring the free market.

05 Mar 2026 01:47:33
With all the possible outs, I would say wholesale changes are on the cards. Not getting CL would surely have a big effect on who we can bring in. A run to the last 4 would net the club somewhere in the region of 100m. Last 16 about 65m.

04 Mar 2026 21:34:36
Another set of nightmare results midweek for us then. Some of these referring decisions are baffling, but it just seems they seem to decide they favour a certain team before the season starts.

04 Mar 2026 21:16:18
Watching all the games tonight, channel flicking. Have to say every team playing tonight is full on going for it. Now that's football. Makes you wonder even more., what have we been doing all season.

05 Mar 2026 00:43:30
I have to say, watching the Arsenal highlights, I would disagree with you, and so would the media. Dreadful side, only one team trying to win.

For all the criticism on here of Slot, and I've certainly been one to do just that, the league is dreadful, and it must be extremely difficult trying to manage with all the time wasting, blatant cheating, poor refereeing, etc.

I have lost interest massively, and I think next season will be even worse.

04 Mar 2026 21:14:39
If there was ever a manager who made football look like afternoon tea, it's Slot.

He's a calm and controlled which is reflected in the style of play and possession. Very civilised. That's until we lose the ball. Then it turns into players running around like shopping trolleys being blown across a car park in a hurricane.

It goes from yoga to an episode of Casualty.

Is it just me, or would the words, "just a bit faster, lads, " actually help?

04 Mar 2026 19:46:03
Congratulations once again to the broadcasters for more excellent booking.

The Fulham game on the 11th April has been moved to 5.30 so it can be shown on sky sports.

That's grand national day btw.

04 Mar 2026 18:08:09
Slot needs to go. We need to move on. Need a new manager bounce. Keeping him will result in us finishing outside of the top 4/ 5. Changing him now might give us more of a chance.

Might not guarantee it but to leave it as it is will be counter productive. Watching this football is painful. He looks like he's run his ra e and is ready for a new challenge.

04 Mar 2026 21:23:49
Maybe. I doubt it will happen now. The lack of quality is a concern, but the lack of the basics is even worse, and the lack of fight is unimaginable. In truth, we probably should have bitten the bullet months ago.

Now I fear it's too late; they will wait until summer, and they can feel justified separating, whilst we have to manage a season in the Europa League at best.

04 Mar 2026 17:47:19
OK, so I am going to say it, it likely won't go down well, but here we go.

Performances and results this season have been really disappointing, and it is probably past the point of saving. I imagine Slot will and should go at the end of the season. Even if he turned things around completely, lately, he just doesn't look happy in the role either.

But one thing that I have noticed recently is that although as fans it's fine to get frustrated and criticise, etc., there seems to be a growing group of our fans who just come across as entitled? It's the main thing that drives me crazy about Arsenal fans!

Whether Slot should be sacked or not is one thing, but:

- Insulting the man
- Assuming we should automatically be winning everything
- Hurling abuse at our own players the minute they make a mistake

These are just poor traits in my opinion.

I agree tactics and management are completely wrong, but I can still have respect for the man who won us the league as he sees out his role towards the end of the season. In my opinion, a mutual parting of ways (at least portrayed that way in the summer) is a nicer and more deserved way of doing things, especially as we haven't made any decisions earlier in the season.

Also a few things to consider (again just my opinion) :

- We have been in decline since 2020/ 21, really, and as we saw Mane and Firmino leave and the crux of the midfield that brought so much joy, we started to become more vulnerable.
- We plastered over it quite well and for a while, but it's never quite been the same
- Klopp started to struggle
- Winning the league last year was amazing, but if we are honest as much as we were consistent, the other teams just fell away. I'm not so sure we would have won it if we had a City of old breathing down our necks. But respect for winning it - just stating it felt more like a Leicester wildcard season
- If anything, if Slot had been 4th/ 5th last season (ignoring the poor performances and tactics of course), then actually it would have been accepted as transition.

Anyway, a long message to essentially say. I agree it looks to no longer be working and running it's course, but let's not act as entitled fans who just berate out own team and abuse them - it's not becoming and honestly, the small group (but seems to be growing) who act like this, just make a mockery of the club. If I was an outside manager and saw how abusive and quickly our own fans turn on a manager and how they demonstrate that online etc, I'm not sure there would be too many wanting to join.

Vent over, and of course it's only aimed at the minority who have been Slot out for a long time AND also abusive. There are ways to act and this is not it.

Those who have opinions constructively criticise without abuse, but collectively want the best for the club, understanding that it's not a game of Football manager - as you were and I believe the underpiining of what this site is all about/ meant to be.

{Ed025's Note - great post that Jimjam..

04 Mar 2026 18:43:50
Spot on, Jimjam. Slot has had a v poor season and deserves criticism; he's got it v badly wrong this season. He seems like a decent guy, and gave us one of the best days of our Liverpool supporting lives against Spurs last season when we clinched the league, and should be respected for that.

This calling him names is typical modern day social media crap, and I would've hoped Liverpool supporters, considering their reputation as knowledgeable football fans, would've been above that.

04 Mar 2026 18:45:50
Great post, Jimjam. I've posted elsewhere that it's one thing to want the Head Coach out; it's another to call him an idiot and bald fraud.

Don't get me wrong, I'm no saint. When I'm not at games, I can often be found on the chat moaning about players.

This is part due to the fact I'm a miserable old git.

Like I say, great post, Jimjam, but sadly it will fall on deaf ears.

04 Mar 2026 16:22:06
In all the commotion about the game less night, nobody's mentioned it, but I have to say Dom's new hair style is awful. Surely, as captain VVD has a duty to take him to one side and have a word.

05 Mar 2026 00:47:17
I long for the days when the last thing we talked about was players' hairstyles, unless it was the Keegan perm, of course. But I agree; I'm not sure what he's thinking. Rather, he should focus on winning some 50-50s rather than playing with his socks down, etc.

04 Mar 2026 11:18:51
Can I be added to live chat please?

{Ed033's Note - Red Rebellion added.

04 Mar 2026 13:33:32
What are your views on sage coloured paint, Red Rebellion?

04 Mar 2026 10:49:21
Been told from a very trusted source close to the club, Arne Slot wanted Liverpool to try and tempt Lamine Yamal as a Salah replacement Richard Hughes apparently laughed it off.

W.

04 Mar 2026 12:49:38
If true, then rightly so, you would be talking world record money for a player who has shown no interest in joining us.

04 Mar 2026 15:25:10
What?

No, money in the world would bring LY to LFC.

This is definitely a windup.