The main thing I took from the Inter v Liverpool game is that all this hysteria about the manager losing the dressing room looks way overblown. Whatever is going on behind the scenes, it did not look like a group of players who have checked out.
I'm still holding back from any big conclusions about Arne Slot. Truth is, none of us really know enough about what’s happening day to day at the club, and I’m not pretending I do. But looking at what we actually saw on the pitch, the evidence was pretty simple: the players were still willing to put in the hard yards for each other and for the manager. They ran, they battled, they stuck in. As far as I could tell, anyway.
The Dressing Room Narrative Doesn’t Quite Fit
There has been a lot of talk lately about the atmosphere around the squad, who’s unhappy, who isn’t buying in, and whether Slot has already lost too many of them. That might make for good arguments online, but it didn’t really match the intensity of what we saw.
You don’t get that level of work off the ball from a team that has downed tools. The pressing, the tracking runners, the willingness to cover for each other when a mate was out of position: those are not the signs of a group that has stopped caring. They’re signs of a side still trying to put it right, even if the quality and cohesion aren’t consistently where we want them yet.
Split Fanbase, Same Badge
Right now it feels like we’re stuck between two loud camps. One half of the fanbase wants Slot out already and is convinced he’s ruining the club. The other half is just pleased to see the lads putting a shift in and are willing to give the manager more time because of that.
Until there is real clarity from inside the club, that divide probably carries on. But for me, I’m happier stepping away from the drama as much as possible. I’d rather focus on what I can actually see: a group of players still running themselves into the ground for the badge and for each other.
Focusing On What Happens On The Pitch
That doesn’t mean everything is perfect or that questions shouldn’t be asked. Performances still need to improve in certain areas, and there are clearly things that need sorting out if we’re going to get back to the level we all expect from Liverpool.
But watching that game, I felt like I could ignore a lot of the noise off the pitch for a bit. It felt, at least, like my team was trying everything they could to win football matches again. For now, that effort is enough for me to stay patient, watch it develop and see where it goes rather than joining the pile-on or pretending everything is rosy. The truth, as usual, is probably somewhere in between.
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