Liverpool head coach Arne Slot understands the pressure he is under to deliver Champions League qualification after the reigning Premier League champions’ latest damaging defeat

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has his target set, otherwise it could cost him his job at Anfield…Arne Slot will reportedly face the sack as Liverpool head coach should his team fail to qualify for next season’s Champions League.

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After entering the season as reigning Premier League champions and with £450m worth of new playing talent, the Reds sit a mighty 17 points off leaders Arsenal in sixth. Mikel Arteta’s side are all-but certain to reach Europe’s top competition, whilst second-placed Manchester City boosted their chances of qualification when dealing a damaging 2-1 defeat to Slot ‘s men at Anfield last Sunday.

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Aston Villa and Manchester United currently occupy the final spaces left of the top-four, leaving Chelsea to hold fifth spot with a four-point advantage over Liverpool.

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At his pre-Sunderland press conference on Tuesday morning, the 47-year-old himself admitted: “Yes, if we don’t have Champions League football, it is definitely not been an acceptable season.

“The season I arrived here, we could only sign Federico Chiesa and that was after a Europa League season. So it does have an enormous impact on the way this club is run. So I’m completely aware of that.

“[We have to be] close to perfection because of the points we are behind.”

So, Slot is well aware of the ramifications of failing to qualify for next season’s Champions League and of growing scrutiny with his credit in the bank from last season’s English league title success quickly depleting.

Club owners Fenway Sports Group will be attentive to the situation and, according to ESPN, the Dutchman needs a ‘convincing’ end to the season with a place in next season’s Champions League secured, otherwise he will ‘struggle to survive’ in his job at Anfield, for which he is supposed to be contracted until 2027.

Slot will have two routes to achieve this, the first being a recovery of Liverpool’s Premier League campaign.

As things stand, a top-four spot will be required to qualify for next season’s Champions League, though there is the possibility of a lifeline emerging. Like last season, the collective performance of English clubs in Europe so far in 2025/26 has put the Premier League in pole position to earn an extra qualifying space, which would be given to the team who finishes fifth.

The second option the Reds possess is winning this season’s Champions League, which would be the seventh in the club’s history and the first since 2019’s success under Jurgen Klopp.

Ramsay appeared against Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup in October, but he has not made a single appearance in any other game.

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With both Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley injured, the pressure has been rising on Slot to find an alternative solution.

Dominik Szoboszlai has often started at right-back this season, and did so as Man City beat Liverpool 2-1 on Sunday.

But in a moment of confusion at the end of the game, Szoboszlai was sent off for fouling Erling Haaland, and Slot’s options have been further reduced.

Liverpool fans stunned by Arne Slot comments

It is no secret that Slot is under massive pressure at Liverpool, amid what has been a well and truly awful season.

The Reds won the Premier League at a canter last season, and after a sensational summer, they were expected to repeat the trick.

We have completed the transfer of Alexander Isak from Newcastle United on a long-term contract 🙌🔴

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) September 1, 2025

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Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak, Hugo Ekitike and several others arrived in a record-breaking summer at Anfield, but despite everything, Slot’s team have collapsed entirely.

Just six Premier League wins since September have left Liverpool well off the pace and falling behind in the race for the top four.

The Dutchman does not help himself with his frequently questionable press conferences, either.

“If you don’t win a game, the players who are not playing become the best players in the squad,” Slot said on Tuesday when asked about Ramsay‘s lack of playing time.

Liverpool fans instantly reacted with fury. One fan said: “Great way to build up his confidence, well done baldy”.

Great way to build up his confidence well done baldy

— F and W Waffle (@FandWWaffle) February 10, 2026

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His lack of trust in youth is massively concerning, especially with the club under 1 roof.

I thought the entire point of that was to expose them to the first team.

Who wants to be exposed to a coaching culture that doesnt trust anyone outside of 14/15 players

— Tom Wells (@TomWells97) February 10, 2026

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That’s a disrespectful answer. He may not of meant it that way but he needs to improve his delivery

— Just_Different (@CharlieMyles7) February 10, 2026

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Another said: “His lack of trust in youth is massively concerning, especially with the club under one roof.

He said the same about Gomez and Endo.

— Sean (@Sean_Mc90) February 10, 2026

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Do the board or those managing football at Liverpool feel comfortable with this comments?

— eddie♈️ (@edem_DemsLfc) February 10, 2026

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I’m sure Ramsay will be brimming with self confidence after this latest glowing endorsement from the head coach 🙄

— Smigger (@Smigger67) February 10, 2026

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We weren’t winning games with a fit first XI for goodness sake, it’s just depressing to hear his excuses every week. It must be incredibly motivating for the squad to have multiple players sat on the bench every week being told they’re just there to pad out the numbers.

— Joel (@PeterFalksMac) February 10, 2026

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“I thought the entire point of that was to expose them to the first team. Who wants to be exposed to a coaching culture that doesn’t trust anyone outside of 14/15 players”.

That guy is absolutely disrespectful. What a horrible head coach!

— Juan Camilo (@meazza1990_) February 10, 2026

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And you let that answer slide??? Are any of you journalists asking any tough follow up questions to some of these appalling answers?

— Sangria (@sangria_ynwa) February 10, 2026

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Such a shame the board won’t sack this average clown 😒

— DalaYen (@1DalaYen) February 10, 2026

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Others echoed the same sentiment, describing the comment as “disrespectful” and “appalling”.

Slot on extremely thin ice at Liverpool

Following the weekend’s action, Liverpool now face a five-point deficit to Man United in fourth and risk falling out of contention altogether.

Slot has admitted himself that failure to qualify for the Champions League would be disastrous, and the Reds could be facing that reality in the coming weeks.

Liverpool – Premier League fixturesDateSunderland (A)11 FebNottingham Forest (A)22 FebWest Ham (H)28 FebWolves (A)3 MarTottenham (H)15 Mar

Difficult trips to Sunderland and Nottingham Forest are upcoming, with at least three points surely necessary to sustain any challenge for the final spot in the top four.

With the financial ramifications of failing to achieve that target massive, decision-makers could even decide to take action before the end of the season.

Mo Salah has been heavily linked with a money-spinning move to Saudi Arabia and it now looks more likely than ever after his future at Liverpool was plunged into doubt

Mo Salah is wanted by Al-Ittihad

Mo Salah’s agent has opened talks with Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad after the Liverpool star reportedly gave him permission to arrange a lucrative transfer. Salah, 33, has been heavily linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League over the past few years, with Al-Ittihad notably bidding £150million for his services in 2023.

Liverpool turned it down before fending off interest again last year, convincing Salah to sign a new contract until 2027. But an explosive fallout with Arne Slot earlier this season plunged his future at Anfield back into doubt.

Although he stayed put during the winter transfer window, this summer could finally see Salah head to the Middle East. A report from Foot Mercato claims that the Egyptian has told his agent, Ramy Abbas Issa, to move forward with negotiations.

It’s added that Salah is much more open to the idea of joining Al-Ittihad than he was 12 months ago. The reigning Saudi champions recently parted ways with Karim Benzema in what’s proved to be a controversial transfer, freeing up room in their budget for Salah.

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Al-Ittihad also sold N’Golo Kante in January while Fabinho’s contract is set to expire in June. Another high earner, Moussa Diaby, has been linked with a return to Europe, and he plays in the position as Salah.

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The forward is on course for his least prolific season since moving to Merseyside in 2017, having only scored six goals this term. Salah was briefly axed from Liverpool’s squad in December following a bombshell interview in which he said he had ‘no relationship’ with Slot, who’d left him out of his starting line-up for three consecutive

Arne Slot and Mo Salah held showdown

Salah told reporters: “It seems like the club has thrown me under the bus. That is how I am feeling. I think it is very clear that someone wanted me to get all of the blame.

“I got a lot of promises in the summer and so far I am on the bench for three games so I can’t say they keep the promise. I said many times before that I had a good relationship with the manager and all of a sudden, we don’t have any relationship. I don’t know why, but it seems to me, how I see it, that someone doesn’t want me in the club.”