Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has spoken out after the Reds sacked manager Arne Slott on Saturday, less than a week after the end of the season.
Jamie Carragher has expressed concerns about Liverpool’s next head coach taking over. (Image: Sky Sports)
Jamie Carragher has admitted he was surprised by the timing of Liverpool’s decision to sack manager Arne Slott and allow Andoni Iraola to take over. The former defender believes the Reds’ hierarchy and squad as a whole are to blame following their poor defense of the Premier League title.
Less than a week after the 1-1 draw with Brentford, the Dutchman was relieved of his duties despite leading the club to Champions League qualification on the final day. Liverpool suffered a poor defense of their Premier League title, losing 20 games in all competitions.
Andoni Iraola, who is set to leave Bournemouth as a free agent when his contract expires next month, has emerged as the frontrunner to become the Reds’ 23rd permanent manager. Despite this, Carragher was surprised by the timing of the Premier League winning manager’s departure.
He told Sky Sports: “I was surprised. A lot of what came out of the club was the manager’s words. Arne Slott said in the press conference that a coach was about to be appointed, so if he didn’t want to be the manager, there’s no way the club would allow him to do that. I think it was sudden and caught everyone, including Arne Slott, off guard.”
“I’m on the fence about Arne Slott, I have to say, but I would support any decision and I understand both sides of the argument, but football’s elite managers have found ways to fix things to make Liverpool better, but they haven’t helped with reinforcements. Have any of them done well?”
“You could say that to the manager, but should the manager have gotten more out of the players? Should the players have done more? Yes. Should the people above the manager have given him a better team? Yes, there are a lot of people to blame.”
Iraola produced some excellent performances in the second half of the season, turning around Bournemouth’s fortunes and taking them to European competition for the first time in the club’s history.
The Cherries’ style of play has received widespread praise, with many comparisons being drawn between the Cherries’ attacking approach and the philosophy required at Anfield. Carragher was full of praise for the Spaniard, but stopped short of endorsing his role, pointing out potential shortcomings, such as the demands of his high-intensity methods amidst a demanding fixture list.
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Arne Slott was sacked by Liverpool after a disappointing campaign (Image: Peter Byrne/PA Wire)
He said: “He’s done a great job. There’s still a big question mark. The football is what Liverpool strive for, high-intensity football, but when you’re the manager of Liverpool, it’s not everything. That was what worried me. Off the ball Liverpool were too poor. He’s great in that respect, but when he had the ball it was when he dealt with the low blocks.”
Carragher added that Liverpool’s next manager will be expected to win the league. “My worry is, can they play with that intensity when you’re playing games every three days? Whenever you bring a manager into a top club in England, will they win the league? Liverpool had a manager who won the league, so I was always worried. It’s a risk no matter who comes in, but Liverpool had a manager who won the league.”
The events of Slott’s final months were overshadowed by Mohamed Salah’s decision to terminate his lucrative two-year contract at Anfield and publicly criticize the head coach.
The Egyptian bid an emotional farewell to Liverpool supporters last Sunday after a record-breaking nine years there, but he still bid farewell to the Reds’ hierarchy and warned of declining standards at Anfield.
Mohamed Salah and Arne Slott haven’t always been on the same page this season (Image: Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Carragher loudly condemned the Liverpool icon’s actions. The former defender expressed his displeasure at Salah’s behavior towards the manager.
He continued: “There’s no doubt he lost his supporters. I think it was harsh considering what happened 12 months ago. When you talk about player power, the supporter base has a lot of influence, but I don’t think that would have helped in Salah’s case. I’m not happy with that. I don’t want Liverpool Football Club to have enough player power to speak out about a Premier League-winning manager.”
“What’s the point of a coach when a star player criticizes him in public? That shouldn’t happen under any circumstances.
“Perhaps it was the club’s intention, but the performances were poor. My fear was that Man United were not confident in their manager and were stuck with him over the summer, ending up replacing him after two months and wasting most of the year.”
“I don’t know what’s going on in the dressing room. I didn’t like Mo Salah’s post and I didn’t think he should come out in public. Who gets along with which manager?”
“Players have had different managers, but they don’t do it publicly on social media or post applause emojis when someone criticizes their manager. That probably says a lot about what’s going on in the Liverpool dressing room right now. It shows that it’s not as easy a job as it looks from the outside, so the new players will have to sort out that dressing room.”
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