Another heavy defeat for Liverpool could spell the end for Slot as manager

As the travelling Liverpool fans flooded out of Etihad Stadium after the 4-0 defeat to Manchester City on Saturday afternoon, some took the opportunity to serenade a club legend. Unfortunately for head coach Arne Slot, it was not his name on their lips, nor was it that of any of his players. Instead, supporters sang for former midfielder Xabi Alonso, who is the fan-favorite choice to replace Slot in the dugout amid his team's increasingly desperate campaign.

To add insult to injury for the Dutchman, this fan exodus unfolded with more than 20 minutes remaining in the FA Cup quarterfinal tie. With the hosts already 4-0 up and cruising towards a place in the last four, even the most optimistic Reds supporters had abandoned hope of a late revival.

It was Liverpool's 15th defeat of the season in all competitions -- their most in a single campaign since 2014-15, when they lost 18 matches under the floundering Brendan Rodgers. It was also Slot's heaviest defeat as Liverpool boss, and the club's largest margin of defeat since the 7-2 mauling at Aston Villa in October 2020.

Having written himself into the pantheon of Anfield greats last season by winning the Premier League title at the first time of asking, Slot now finds himself presiding over one of the most turbulent spells in the club's recent history.

Wednesday night's UEFA Champions League quarterfinal first-leg clash with Paris Saint-Germain already felt hugely significant; now it is hard to escape the sense that it could make or break Slot's future at Liverpool.

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Hutchison doubtful about Arne Slot's Liverpool future

Don Hutchison believes Arne Slot won't be Liverpool manager at the start of next season following their FA Cup exit to Manchester City.

Liverpool have lost their "fighting spirit"

Perhaps the most damning aspect of Liverpool's capitulation at the Etihad was that it bore a striking resemblance to their league visit to the stadium last November, when they lost 3-0 in the midst of a torrid run of nine defeats in 12 games.

Unlike on their last visit to Manchester, Liverpool started the game well on Saturday and fashioned two big chances, which were spurned by Mohamed Salah and Hugo Ekitike respectively. Profligacy in front of goal has been an enduring issue for Slot's side this season and once again they were made to pay, as City dismantled them in a blistering 20-minute spell, scoring four goals either side of half-time.

Much like in the league fixture, Liverpool were too often the orchestrators of their own downfall. Captain Virgil van Dijk conceded a clumsy penalty for the first goal, before Ibrahima Konaté allowed Erling Haaland to bypass him too easily to net City's second just before the break.

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As in November, City landed the first punch and Liverpool were simply unable to pick themselves up off the canvas. The Reds' soft underbelly left them vulnerable to a demolition, and their latest defeat was the fifth time in 2025-26 they had been beaten by three goals or more. Liverpool didn't lose a single game by that margin last season, and only once succumbed to a 3-0 defeat in 2023-24.

"The fighting spirit wasn't there enough, the mentality wasn't there enough," midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai told TNT Sports afterwards. "None of us were there, to be honest, as much as we could."

It was a worrying admission, and one that tallies with Liverpool's continued proclivity for lacking character in the face of adversity. The Reds have won just two of the 19 games in which they have fallen behind this term -- an appalling record for a team once dubbed "mentality monsters" by former manager Jürgen Klopp.

Continued comparisons between Slot and his charismatic predecessor have dogged the Dutchman for much of the campaign, and while Slot's more reserved, straight-talking persona was lauded last season, it has subsequently led to questions over his ability to galvanize a group so clearly in need of intense inspiration.

Certainly, it feels that Liverpool require a seismic shake up, with the synergy between head coach, players and fans having disintegrated over the course of this season. The image of Szoboszlai remonstrating with the few supporters that remained inside the stadium at the full-time whistle on Saturday offered the perfect encapsulation of just how fractured things are.

For any manager, restoring unity at a time of unrest is a tough task. Wrestling back a sense of togetherness, both on and off the pitch, feels like a particularly tall order for a Liverpool boss who increasingly looks to be swimming against the tide.

Champions League humbling could test FSG's support

Of course, Slot should not assume all of the responsibility for Liverpool's malaise. Injuries to key personnel, inadequate squad building and the tragic loss of striker Diogo Jota on the eve of preseason have all complicated his assignment this season.

The players, too, must accept they have too often failed to hit the heights expected of them as Premier League champions, both in terms of attitude and application. That two of City's goals on Saturday came shortly after Liverpool lost possession from their own throw-in points to a squad regularly failing to do the basics.

"If you tell me that from 15 runs City made, we didn't follow them 15 times, then I don't agree with you," Slot said in his postmatch news conference. "But if you simply look at the goals, I see runs not being followed, I see crosses not being blocked, I see duels not being won. Every single time we forget to block a cross or follow a runner, then it was a goal."

This sentiment was echoed by Van Dijk, who offered supporters an apology for his team's gutless display and admitted Liverpool seemed to "give up" after City scored their third goal five minutes into the second half.

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Nicol: Arne Slot is in big trouble after defeat vs. Man City

Steve Nicol worries for the future of Arne Slot at Liverpool after a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup quarterfinals.

Still, the buck ultimately stops with Slot. Liverpool's fanbase is -- by modern football standards, at least -- a relatively patient one, but the sight of supporters voting with their feet at the Etihad will be troubling for club owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG).

Having won what was only a second league title in 35 years for Liverpool last season, Slot deserves to be treated with respect and appreciation, wherever his long-term future may lie. FSG and sporting director Richard Hughes have remained firmly behind him throughout the twists and turns of this wretched campaign, but a humiliation at the hands of PSG -- or league defeats against traditional rivals Everton, Manchester United and Chelsea in the coming weeks -- could make his position untenable.

Even if Slot is able to fulfil this season's primary goal of Champions League qualification, persisting with him as manager beyond the summer leaves him susceptible to the ignition of further hostility at the first sign of struggle next term.

At present, it seems the only avenue to regaining the total support of a disillusioned fanbase is winning the Champions League itself. The idea appears fanciful considering holders PSG beat Chelsea 8-2 on aggregate in the last round, while a showdown with either Bayern Munich or Real Madrid awaits in the semifinals. But the cultural cache of European competition has often given shine to an otherwise unremarkable Liverpool campaign, and the prospect of history repeating itself here should not be entirely discounted.

Certainly, PSG boss Luis Enrique and his star-studded squad of players will not be taking their passage to the last four for granted, considering they required penalties to eliminate Liverpool en route to last year's trophy. In some quarters, last season's round-of-16 exit at the hands of the French champions is viewed as the start of the Reds' decline under Slot.

If Liverpool are unable to produce something special against those same opponents this term, it might just be the thing that seals the Dutchman's fate.