Just when you think things can’t get any worse…

Manchester City outfought and outright humiliated Liverpool. But crucially, they didn’t outclass us.

Liverpool teams of the past have fallen in games of this magnitude. That’s fine, it happens. You can lose a game of football.

But when you do so without the opposition needing to work for it, then something is wrong. And when the opposition scores four goals without needing to work for it, something is very, very wrong.

Liverpool fans have finally turned on Slot

The sight of fans leaving in their droves after 60 minutes has caused a lot of reaction. But if you’re going to lose 4-0 away from home and simultaneously prevent a mass exodus, then you need an extenuating circumstance.

That might be an obvious gulf in quality between the two sides – the 5-2 against Madrid in Klopp’s last Champions League game springs to mind. Or a gulf in quantity – think of the 5-0 to City’s Centurions after Mane saw red early on in 2017. It might even be one of those rare games where everything the opposition hit turns to gold – thankfully, no one was there to witness the 7-2 trouncing at Villa Park in 2020.

However, this defeat, the 16th of the season, was none of those things, and so much like the other 15.

Ninety minutes of pure apathy. A familiar lack of urgency. A concerning lack of energy. And an underwhelming sense of commitment – read the room, Ekitike and Szoboszlai.

Bad seasons can be forgotten if you show up at the business end of the season, where trophies can be won, and flaws are forgiven. A time when Djimi Traore’s are made.

What’s worse is that these players are capable of so much more than Traore (sorry, Djimi!).

Instead of themselves, the only thing Liverpool proved at the Etihad is that talent without hard work is nothing.

When it hasn’t been your day, your week, your month, or even your year

Bad days at the office can happen. But, and at the risk of sounding like The Rembrandts, when those days turn into months, which turn into a year, then serious questions need to be asked about the Arne Slot.

What’s more likely, an entire squad having a poor season, or a manager failing to get the best out of the talent available to him?

Incidentally, I’m not friends with some of these Liverpool players at the moment. Like many, I just don’t see myself reflected in many of them right now.

Their attitude has been at odds with the fans at times this season. It might be down to poor management. It might be down to poor recruitment. It could be down to grief – although you’d think the motivation of honouring Diogo Jota’s memory with silverware would give them something of a second wind.

Whatever the reason for their struggles, Liverpool are running out of time to wait and find out why.

Should Slot stay or should he go now?

One of the things keeping Slot in the dugout is FSG’s belief in the long-term instability it would produce. To them, one poor season is a price to pay for long-term success.

But right now, sticking with the Dutchman seems a lot riskier.

Not only are you sacrificing an outside chance at the Champions League in the short-term, but there is no guarantee Slot will turn this around next season. Once you have lost the crowd, there is no coming back.

Delay the decision, and you can say goodbye to Champions League football next season, and the chance of appointing a better manager. But get a fresh voice in, and you might galvanise them till the end of the season – and beyond.

Changing managers is no guarantee of success, of course. But at this moment in time, the negatives of keeping Slot are starting to outweigh the benefits.

My heart has been Slot out since the 4-1 loss to PSV. I take no joy from this, but yesterday, my head finally followed.

Big decisions to be made.

(Featured Image via Timmy96 / Wikimedia Commons)