Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown has delivered a stark assessment of Arne Slot's position at Liverpool, following a humiliating 3-0 home defeat to Nottingham Forest that has plunged the reigning champions into crisis.
Anfield Humiliation
The shocking result at Anfield on Saturday saw Forest condemn Liverpool to their sixth defeat in seven Premier League games. Goals from Murillo, Nicolo Savona, and Morgan Gibbs-White sealed a comprehensive victory for the visitors, leaving the home crowd stunned.
This dismal run of form leaves Liverpool languishing in the bottom half of the table after 12 games. The reigning champions are now a staggering eight points behind leaders Arsenal, who were set to face Tottenham in the North London Derby later that same day.
A Manager Under Pressure
Just months after delivering a sensational league title in his debut season, Arne Slot is under immense pressure. His tactical approach appears to have lost its effectiveness, and his expensive summer signings have so far failed to deliver.
The Dutch manager was backed with a £450 million war chest to improve his squad, breaking the British transfer record twice to sign Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak. Despite this monumental investment, the team looks a pale shadow of the side that romped to the title last season.
Analysing the situation on BBC's Final Score, Keown did not hold back. "We have to give credit to Forest for what they are doing but yes, the wheels are coming off now for Arne Slot," he stated. "Obviously, it was Jurgen Klopp’s team, and he has tried to come in and make changes, but he has spent £450million on players, and they are going backwards."
The Sack Race Verdict
Despite the alarming collapse in form, Keown does not believe the Liverpool hierarchy will pull the trigger on Slot's tenure just yet, suggesting the manager has built up enough goodwill from last season's triumph.
"I don't think you can win the league one year and get sacked the next," Keown added, while acknowledging the severity of the situation. "It's remarkable what we are seeing with Liverpool. Their fall from grace and to lose this many games at the start of the season... it is unthinkable really."
Keown's view was supported by former Liverpool star Jamie Redknapp on Sky Sports, who urged for patience. He argued that the club had defied expectations by winning the league immediately after Jurgen Klopp's departure and that this was always going to be a challenging period.
However, history shows that such a dramatic fall from grace is not without precedent. The spectre of Claudio Ranieri, who was sacked by Leicester City in 2017 just months after their miraculous title win, looms large as a cautionary tale for any manager experiencing a sudden downturn.
