Liverpool players are growing tired of Arne Slot’s ‘awful’ style of football – Opinion

So, the criticism was not about effort. It was about whether the players are being placed in a structure that allows them to look like themselves.

Slot’s football appears to be wearing on players

Lynch’s strongest point was about the emotional and tactical drain of playing in a side that keeps struggling. “No one likes playing in a team that’s rubbish,” he said.

He then made it more specific to Liverpool’s season: “They’ve done it now for fifty-odd games this season.” Even when Liverpool have won, Lynch argued that they have “not had a structure that’s allowed them to play well.”

That line goes to the heart of the issue. The players may still be playing for Slot, but Lynch suggested they must be frustrated by the style and the lack of control in games.

He said Liverpool have “not consistently dominated an opponent in a way that is enjoyable for the entirety of the season.” That is a significant criticism of the football under Slot, not of the players’ desire.

Photo: IMAGO

Doubts grow over belief in direction

Lynch asked whether the players would be “absolutely delighted” to return next season and “play this sort of football again.” His answer was telling: “Do they believe that it’s going to win again? I struggle to believe that.”

That does not mean the dressing room has turned completely. It means the football is creating doubt. Lynch’s view was that Liverpool have “better players than to be getting dominated in this way every week” or only playing well “for half an hour max.”

So the answer from the podcast was nuanced. Liverpool players have not downed tools, and Lynch believes they are still trying for Arne Slot. But their arguments, frustration and lack of joy in the system suggest a squad growing tired of football that is, in Lynch’s words, “just awful.”