With the Jurgen Klopp era now officially over, Arne Slot will begin work at Melwood over the next few weeks and he arrives with a bulging list of priorities to sort.
In the lead up to his appointment, Slot has been bullish about his capabilities and despite the massive shoes he needs to fill, the charismatic Dutchman doesn’t seem to be overawed by the task ahead of him.
For so long under Klopp Liverpool were Manchester City’s main rivals but with the emergence of Arsenal and a few other clubs such as Aston Villa, Tottenham and Newcastle now well into their respective projects, Liverpool and Slot will need to get off to a fast start to ensure that they can contend at the top of the table once again.
With much work to do, here is a list of four priorities that Slot needs to immediately address upon his arrival on Merseyside.
Implement his style of play quickly
One of the reasons why Slot was seen as the perfect replacement for Klopp was his preference to play attacking, pressing football and it’s believed that the bulk of the current Liverpool squad shouldn’t have too much difficulty in transitioning to Slot’s way of playing.
However, where Klopp’s style of pressing was packed full of energy and was intense from the first minute to the last, Slot prefers a little more control and it will take a little bit of time for the squad to adjust.
With the bulk of his first team playing in either Euro 2024 or the Copa America, Slot will have a reduced timeline to work with his first team stars and he will need to get his ideas across quickly if Liverpool are to start the new season quickly.
Resolve the contract issues of several key men
With Klopp departing, Liverpool are in a new phase of the project and the futures of several key men which include Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mo Salah and Virgil Van Dijk are all very much up in the air.
Having formed the spine of the team for so many years, all find themselves with just a year to run on their contracts and the future of all three is a little murky.
Both Van Dijk and Salah have indicated that they intend to return to Anfield next season, but it may not be as simple as that.
Despite advancing towards the end of their careers, both would still fetch a significant fee in the transfer market and with Liverpool planning to re-invest what they sell, the preference from the club may be to cash in.
TAA is the youngest of the trio but has already achieved so much in his career. He has spoken openly of his desire to continue to test himself on the biggest stage and Real Madrid are reportedly keen admirers. A local lad, he could be the captain of the team for years to come and fans all over the world will hope he commits the best years of his career with the team and leads the club to further glories.
Identify who to bring in
As last season showed on numerous occasions, despite having a great starting eleven, Liverpool’s depth isn’t the greatest and more bodies will be needed if Liverpool are to challenge in both the Premier League and revamped Champions League next season.
Liverpool are currently third in the betting for winning next season’s Premier League title, and those wanting to use any betting promotions to bet on where next season’s title will end up may want to wait until the club’s summer transfer dealings are complete.
Midfield still looks a little thin and the hierarchy of the club will need to plan ahead with the potential departures of both Van Dijk and Salah.
With all of Liverpool’s main rivals likely to spend further, Liverpool will need to invest millions into the team and ensure they buy players of sufficient quality to ensure they continue to keep pace.
How to solve the Darwin Nunez problem
Darwin Nunez has now spent two years at Anfield and despite some memorable moments it’s fair to say that towards the end of the season, the patience of some fans was starting to wear thin. Often verging between the sublime and the ridiculous, Nunez just isn’t clinical enough in front of goal and a decision needs to be made to stick or twist.
With Nunez still able to command a high fee, now could be the perfect time to sell, however if Slot wants to give the Uruguayan striker a chance, he will need to make sure he finds the back of the net on a regular occurrence. Liverpool can’t just rely on the scoring abilities of Mo Salah, they need Nunez to step up and justify the money spent on him.
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