Liverpool FC Team Talk, Gossip, Rumours 2024/25

This Is A Squad Suited to Arne Slot

Albeit the truth is, almost anyone worth his salt could make a good go of it with these players, minus a few outgoings and with a few additions.

Will Arne Slot be the new Liverpool manager? It seems quite likely at this point.

But anyone who plays the right brand of football has a great squad from which to pick and choose.

*Note: the ZenDen is additional content separate from the TTT Main Hub. Rather than seek to write freelance work for other outlets, to supplement my income and keep TTT running (as everything gets more expensive), I write paywalled, zen-like material on the ZenDen. The ZenDen is a quiet space with no commenting – just articles to read. The community remains on the Main Hub, and its where I interact with subscribers, write different articles, and provide post-match analysis.*

While it’s not really a Zen issue, I keep hearing about formations and playing styles, and how they may not suit the Liverpool squad.

And as I keep saying, the only lacking area is having too few centre-backs to play a back three (and to then have three as cover), but most managers use at least one full-back as part of the back three.

Then, how teams switch formations constantly in games, and how the lineup on paper is not how a team plays the game, like fußball.

And, formations change; Liverpool need a manager wedded to a philosophy and a brand of football (high possession, hard-pressing, aggressive attacking, etc.), but whether that’s 4-3-3, 3-4-3 or 4-2-3-1, I don’t see the problem. That has to evolve to find the space, as teams evolve to deny the space.

At the very least, a manager should work around varieties on a theme, not just one hard-and-fast rule.

I don’t pretend to understand the finest tactical intricacies, but I can tell where a player can thrive on any part of the pitch and why.

Slot apparently likes a 4-2-3-1, in which case, the back four is already an established concept.

Two no.6s could help each other; Wataru Endo (if retained) wouldn’t be as exposed, nor would Alexis Mac Allister. The current system is not kind on the Reds’ no.6, as it’s a solo gig.

Or it could be Tyler Morton, or Stefan Bajcetic. Both have huge futures.

Or Trent Alexander-Arnold, who often moves to be a double-pivot in his roving role anyway. Curtis Jones and Dominik Szoboszlai could also do the role.

The three no.10s would suit Cody Gakpo, Luis Díaz, Harvey Elliott, Jones and Szoboszlai, and even Mo Salah, with his take-on success rate having halved over the last seven years and his shooting from wider areas declining badly, is better suited to playing deep (if he stays). He’s no longer a great wide attacking forward.

Liverpool have lots of these “in between” players, who thrive as no.8s and would thrive as no.10s.

Fabio Carvalho, revived at Hull, is another, who didn’t fit the system before, and is another year older, and a bit stronger and faster, as well as wiser. Ditto Bobby Clark and Trey Nyoni.

Diogo Jota is perhaps better further forward, but he’s great at picking the ball up deep and breaking the lines.

I’m not sure Darwin Núñez suits the role of a no.9 in this system, but he’s an enigma.

Someone like Dominic Solanke, if the definitely-included buyback is still active (and the two men who brokered it are now Liverpool’s director of football, and his boss Michael Edwards at FSG), may be worth looking at, to link the attack, as Núñez’s touch and his finishing is too erratic, as is his thinking; but on his day he’s a joy to behold.

Solanke is now a proper hard-pressing, close-controlling target man, with speed to match Núñez according to the stats. He’s English, and meets the homegrown criteria; and like a lot of similar players, he’s coming into his own in the second half of his 20s, as I always feel is possible. I wouldn’t break the bank for him, but he could be a bargain if the buyback hasn’t expired.

Viktor Gyökeres at Sporting is another example. Núñez is about to turn 25, so is he going to mature like they did, or remain too hot-headed and erratic?

(And Liverpool have several super-fast, proper wingers coming through, but if you don’t play with those from the start, they can be bench players to maybe change the game.)

The benefit of buying and developing versatile players is that they can slot (no pun) in to almost any system. And the 15 first team players who visited the Academy this week show the quality that has emerged from there, with much of it still forming.

Even Núñez initially looked like he could play wide, but it would be in a 4-3-3. Of course, any new manager has to work out what to keep in terms of how the team already functions.

There’s a lot of talk about Díaz leaving, and he’s been one of the best players this season.

But in the age of PSR, it won’t be easy to get big money for players (and there won’t be any kind of Philippe Coutinho madness), beyond clubs like PSG; so many mid-tier clubs can no longer afford £50m players, unlike a few years ago. And Díaz would be worth at least £70m in a normal market. Equally, would the club get as much for Núñez to make him worth selling, if they decided it was time to cut their losses?

If Díaz wants to go to Spain or even to PSG (as has been mooted), that’s fine, as it’ll bring in good money. Liverpool don’t have to sell.

Ditto with Mo Salah and maybe a £70m bid from the Saudi league; if he wants to go, great, as that’s a lot of money for a man of his age, with his fading powers (if it’s decided that his improving areas – creating from deep – aren’t needed).

You also feel that Michael Edwards knows what to do about situations like this. And another benefit of Edwards returning is that he knows virtually all the players from his time up to 2022; he knows the youngsters and their potential, as knowledge is handed over to the new manager.

Liverpool can also sell a few squad players for £10m-£20m, maybe up to £30m (Caoimhín Kelleher with a buyback) and loan others out, to finance a mini rebuild; for what will inevitably be called Slotball.

Slot seems like Xabi Alonso, Rúben Amorim and Roberto De Zerbi in his teams playing lots of fast, shorter passing; but if you have elite longer passers at the back (Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk), you use the long diagonals.

Slot is not opposed to those passes.

“Before playing Marseille (in the Europa Conference League semi-finals in 2022), during training he told his midfielders to play long balls out to the wingers, over the top,” explains Krabbendam. “(Orkun) Kokcu, the midfielder, was so tired of it — he asked: ‘Why do we have to keep playing these long balls?’. Slot said he would explain later.

“In 20 minutes, Feyenoord were up 2-0 and both goals came from long balls behind the Marseille defence. He knew that was a weakness of Marseille. If you speak to the Feyenoord players — and it doesn’t matter which players — they will tell you that whatever this coach says, it happens. It’s remarkable. They have blind confidence in him because what he says comes true.”

Equally, while Feyenoord work high-xG chances, I don’t think you can ignore the shooting potential of Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Alexander-Arnold, Elliott and others from distance, but I would limit the players who can take those shots, and the number.

So I don’t think he’d try to make Liverpool a Feyenoord MKII, but will tweak things, to get the best out of what he inherits.

This graphic (below) from The Athletic shows how rounded his team’s style is, but like Liverpool, it’s not high on “patient buildup”.

The ability to boss the ball but also press hard and go at teams relentlessly, without the desire to over-pass, is perhaps the closest similarity. At Feyenoord it’s been done with outstanding defensive metrics, too.

(The ultra-high line at Liverpool is slightly tougher now that van Dijk is only very fast, and not über-fast; ditto Joe Gomez after his injuries, and Ibrahima Konaté. None are now amongst the fastest defenders around – similar to Alexander-Arnold if he stays at right-back. But they’re not slow, and have other qualities.)

Above all else, Slot is a great communicator in English, and that’s what Liverpool need. Selling the vision to the players and the fans is a big part of modern management. Being positive, bullish, optimistic – it works. As long as it’s natural and not forced.

He knows how to win things against the odds, albeit in a lesser league with lesser players, but the ideas scale up. He’s done so with two outsider clubs, and while he will face challenges, he seems ideally suited to the challenge (amongst those who are available).

He won the domestic cup at the weekend as well

Flawed logic. Can you name a manager from the German league who did well in the Prem before Klopp?

he suits our style but do we want to continue with a style that breaks players and leaves us threadbare every year.

Maybe it's time for a change of style, wouldn't be against a less exciting style that delivered results without the player attrition

That's nice of you, the usual lads will be writing him off after the first loss.

Who is your top candidate then?

We can't replace Klopp with a like for like, he does not exist. The name maybe underwhelming to some, but the reality is, every candidate available is going to be a level or more below Klopp. I'm not sure what the alternatives for the club are?

No manager is going to be a good enough name to take over from Klopp and people are in far better positions then us to make these appointments

We celebrate Edwards return and then bemoan his first decision

Interesting video here from David Lynch

Statically he looks the business but it's skewed because the league is not one of the bigger ones.

It's also seems as though Edwards and co. want someone who can slot (😉) in without too much upheaval and change of styles.

No one is going to be good enough to replace Klopp, he's a once in a 20/30 year manager.

Club is in a good place though, were not sacking our manager, proper sporting structure in place. I'm cautiously optimistic but there will be a lot of change, I do see key older players leaving.

What are you saying though?

Who?

Who for a year in particular?

Why a year of Alonso is off to Madrid?

What's underwhelming about him?

The pool of actual experienced winning managers is very small now, all managers linked are the next generation of managers, so we are naturally going to be making a gamble.

If we could hire an experienced winning manager I'd pick Luis Enrique but I never saw the club going down that route.

Slot seems to tick alot of boxes but lacks top level experience, but he has to get that somewhere. Maybe he goes to Bayern next, is a success and then out of our reach. Arsenal pulled the number 2 from City, gave him time and its working out.

Everyone is trying to find the next best thing in management, that could be Slot, Amorim, you just don't know until they are given a chance at a top job.

We wanted Edwards back, he's done his thing, this is his pick. The man who spotted undervalued potential throughout his previous tenure at Liverpool.

Tuchel couldn't even win a one team league with a world class striker, wouldn't see zidane fitting us or would he even want to manage in England, Nagelsmann is german coach, Emery is brilliant but I have doubts on wether he can truly make the jump to the elite he's just a bit below. So your options are taking a gamble on potential.

I don't think you actually have ownership of the prescient points if the next manager isn't as good as Klopp.

Tuchel, the man who has famously fallen out with every club he has ever been involved with within 18 months and is on-track to somehow prevent Munich from winning a title. First time in 11 seasons.

Zidane hasn't managed in years and had a world class Madrid team under him when he was in charge of a team. He could be as big a fraud as any of them, we know absolutely nothing of his capabilities.

Emery has committed to Villa until 2027, and also failed miserably at a top club when he was in charge of Arsenal.

Nagelsmann has confirmed he is staying with Germany until after the world cup in 2026.

The truth is none of these guys are fit to tie Klopps boots. No matter who we go for is a risk and on a hiding to noting. So I'm not exactly sure what more you expect from the club on this one..

Rodgers had never won anything when we signed him.

Inzaghi has already said he's not leaving, so has Alonso. Zidane has had plenty of chances to manage teams in England and elsewhere but never has, same as when he was a player I just don't see him ever moving to the PL.

Emery is at the right level at his currrent club, same as with Sevilla before, to succeed. I honestly don't think he's the answer.

Tuchel and Nagelsmann would likely be on our list somewhere I reckon. Personally I wouldn't take either but you are right they have decent records and aren't that much of a risk. I think Nagelsmann signed a new contract this week though?

But you can't really hold the Dutch league against him as he hasn't yet managed (or played) outside of it.

To be fair to him, even the likes of Mourinho and Conte couldn't win a league title with Harry Kane in the team, seems unfair to blame Tuchel 🤣

League is gone, the loss to Palace confirmed it.