Slot In or Slot Out? The Middle Ground

I’ve never really understood why it has to be one camp or the other. You can be backing Arne Slot right now and still have worries. And you can be questioning him without wanting the whole thing to burn down. It’s football, it’s Liverpool, and most of us are just reacting to what we’re seeing week to week.

From my side, I’m choosing to lean into the positives for the time being. Results have been decent, and there’s been a bit of an upturn in both form and performance. Not perfect, not finished, but improved. That matters when the season starts to feel like it’s moving into the heavier months.

The good bits are there if you’re willing to see them

There are a few reasons to feel a bit brighter about it. You can see players finding their feet again, and that always changes the feel of a side. One or two lads suddenly look sharper, more confident in duels, more willing to demand the ball, and it has a knock-on effect across the pitch.

Hugo’s form is a big part of that too. When your keeper is playing well, it settles everyone else down. The back line holds its shape that bit better, the midfield doesn’t panic as quickly, and you stop giving teams encouragement for free.

And Wirtz, for me, is starting to look like the class player we all believe he can become. Not every moment has to be fireworks. Sometimes it’s just the touches, the decisions, the calmness under pressure. That’s the stuff you build around.

December doesn’t hand out trophies

The other point is the simplest one: trophies and league tables aren’t won in December. We all know what a season looks like. There’ll be swings, dips, injuries, suspensions, weird results you can’t explain. City can wobble, Villa can wobble, Arsenal can wobble. Going for multiple competitions puts pressure on everyone, and not every squad handles it the same.

So if Liverpool are still in the mix while not even playing at their absolute best, that’s not a bad position to be in.

My worry: game management and leadership

But yeah, there are fears. Even with the recent positives, we still look unconvincing at times when we’re in winning positions. That’s the bit that makes you shift in your seat. It’s not always about tactics on a whiteboard either, it’s about control, tempo, and knowing when to take the sting out of a match.

The other thing that nags at me is leadership, and I don’t just mean one shouter with an armband. I mean collective leadership. Two or three players, in different areas of the pitch, taking responsibility for the next five minutes when the crowd gets anxious and the opposition starts throwing bodies forward.

Add in what looks like a lack of pace in key moments and some obvious late-game fatigue, and it’s hard not to feel like we’re one bad result away from confidence dipping again. Football can turn quickly. The job now is making sure it doesn’t.

Onwards and upwards. There’s loads still to play for, and that’s the main thing.

Written by Bristol_Red: 25 December 2025