Slot's Liverpool sacking may prove bad news for Manchester United next season

Arne Slot has been sacked as Liverpool manager, ending a turbulent second season at Anfield that saw the club fall from Premier League champions to scraping into the Champions League — a collapse that had Manchester United supporters celebrating on Saturday when the news broke.

United had already enjoyed a landmark campaign against their fiercest rivals, completing a league double over Liverpool for the first time in a decade and finishing above them in the table for the first time since 2022/23. Slot’s struggles made that possible, and his exit was greeted with predictable satisfaction at Old Trafford.

Yet the more considered view among United observers is that Slot’s departure may not be the gift it first appears. Liverpool’s official statement was notably warm in tone, describing his contribution as “significant, meaningful and — most importantly of all to supporters and ourselves — successful,” and praising his “work ethic, diligence and level of expertise.” The club also pointed to his title win in his debut English season as being “built on outstanding coaching and leadership every single day.” The language reads less like a dismissal and more like an apology, suggesting internal tensions rather than a straightforward performance-based decision.

The numbers behind Slot’s second season are damning regardless. Liverpool spent heavily in the summer transfer window — most prominently on Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, a combined outlay of £225 million that supporters hailed as winning the market before a ball was kicked. Between them, the two forwards managed just eight Premier League goals. Slot had reshaped the squad in his own image but, by most measures, left Liverpool weaker than he found them.

That weakness was precisely what United exploited this season. The concern for Ruben Amorim’s side is that a new manager at Anfield — arriving with fresh authority, a clear-the-air effect on the dressing room, and a squad that still contains considerable talent — could accelerate Liverpool’s recovery. Historically, managerial changes at top clubs tend to produce a short-term uplift, and Liverpool’s resources mean any incoming coach will have the tools to rebuild quickly.

For United fans, the laughter may be short-lived. A reinvigorated Liverpool next season could prove a far sterner test than the one Slot’s faltering side presented this year.