Stop the gatekeeping, talk about the football

There’s a weird habit in online Liverpool chats where any opinion that doesn’t neatly match the room gets labelled as “trolling”. Not just wrong, not just harsh, but instantly written off. And it does my head in, because it kills the one thing supporters are meant to do: talk about the football, properly.

You don’t have to agree with someone to let them speak. You don’t have to like their tone. But if the only comeback is “you’re a troll”, that usually says more about the lack of argument than anything else.

Argue the point, not the poster

Liverpool is a massive club with a fanbase that covers every mood going. Some are optimistic by default, some are sceptical, most are somewhere in the middle and change their mind week to week. That’s normal. What isn’t normal is acting like being “new” to a conversation, or simply not buying the hype, automatically makes you a rival fan.

If someone thinks Arne Slot has started shakily, let them explain why. If someone thinks it’s fine and we’re moving the right way, let them explain that too. That’s the whole point. Gatekeeping the discussion just turns everything into a daft loyalty test.

The basics still matter: fitness and defending

The bit that keeps getting lost in the noise is the actual critique: the basics. Fitness and organisation. You can talk about style, pressing triggers, build-up patterns, all that stuff, but if the legs aren’t there and the back line looks unsure of itself, the fancy bits don’t stand a chance.

Getting players fit isn’t glamorous. Sorting distances between defence and midfield isn’t a “project” buzzword. It’s the bread and butter. If you look ragged late in games, if you’re conceding chances that feel avoidable, it doesn’t matter what the shape looks like on a tactics board.

And defensively, Liverpool has spent years living off good habits. When those habits wobble, it becomes obvious quickly. It’s not about perfection, it’s about looking like you know what you’re doing.

“Transition year” can’t be a free pass

I get the idea of a transition year. New manager, new methods, a bit of settling in. Fine. But “transition” can’t just become a blanket excuse for anything that feels mediocre. It still has to look like it’s heading somewhere.

And that’s where the split comes. Some see enough to be patient. Others don’t. Both are allowed. What isn’t helpful is pretending doubt is disloyalty, or that questions are somehow a personal attack.

Whether you’re backing Slot all the way or you’re deeply unconvinced, at least keep it on the football. That’s where the real conversation is, and it’s the only place it ever gets settled.

Written by Slotthedross: 23 December 2025