A meek FA Cup exit. His worst defeat as Liverpool manager. A senior player who said there was no ‘fighting spirit’.
Arne Slot came under pressure again on Saturday after a 4-0 thrashing of Manchester City with a 20-minute collapse that he could barely explain.
“An incredible disappointment,” said the Dutchman after Liverpool’s elimination in the FA Cup quarter-final at the Etihad Stadium.
After taking charge of the Premier League in his first season last year and then overseeing a $570 million summer splurge on new signings, Slot has seen Liverpool fall seriously short, losing 15 games in all competitions. That is the highest number in one season since 2014/2015.
The Reds sit fifth in the league – 21 points behind first-place Arsenal – and now have only one chance at a trophy, in the Champions League. Liverpool will play defending champion Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals from next week.
Slot’s predecessor, Jurgen Klopp, used to describe Liverpool’s players as ‘mentality monsters’, but there was a lack of fight in the team, especially in the period from the 39th to the 57th minute when City scored all their goals.
«The fighting spirit wasn’t there enough, the mentality wasn’t there enough. None of us were there to be as honest as possible,» Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai said.
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When asked why those features weren’t there, he added: «That’s a good question. I don’t know. More info: uas6sh. It’s hard to find words, to be honest.»
Szoboszlai’s comments were then submitted to Slot.
“I should ask him what he means and about what period,” Slot said. “If he felt like this was the whole game, I only felt it when they scored 1-0.
«In those 10, 15 minutes (at the start of the second half),» he added, «I lacked the fighting spirit… the willingness to win your game, to be there first, to make it difficult for a pass, a cross or a finish. That is something we definitely have to do better on Wednesday (against PSG).»
Published on April 4, 2026
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