Liverpool have parted ways with head coach Arne Slot just one season after he guided the club to Premier League title success in his debut campaign.
The dismissal arguably represents one of the most dramatic falls from grace seen from any top-flight title-winning manager in the modern era.
Chelsea sacked several managers shortly after similar achievements, but the unique circumstances surrounding owner Roman Abramovich made those situations a distinct case.
Carlo Ancelotti was dismissed at the end of his second Chelsea season in 2011, having won the league and FA Cup double in his first year in charge.
Jose Mourinho’s second spell at Stamford Bridge ended in December 2015, seven months after winning the title, with the club sitting just one point above the relegation zone.
Leicester City dismissed Claudio Ranieri in February 2017 with the club only one point off the relegation places, just nine months after their stunning Premier League triumph.
None, however, had arguably been sacked from such a position of strength as Slot, who won the title comfortably in his first season before being handed a staggering £450m transfer budget.
Slot’s first season appeared seamless, with the squad he inherited from Jurgen Klopp winning the title by 10 points with four games to spare, losing only twice before the job was done.
Only the addition of £10m Juventus forward Federico Chiesa supplemented the squad that Klopp had described as Liverpool 2.0 ahead of that title-winning campaign.
Slot demonstrated genuine tactical intelligence during that first season, converting Ryan Gravenberch into the number six role originally earmarked for Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi, who opted to remain in La Liga.
Gravenberch was outstanding in that role, providing the platform for a more organised Liverpool side that was less chaotic but highly effective and difficult to break down.
Slot also deployed Luis Diaz as a striker rather than a winger, a move that proved inspired as the Colombian made numerous match-winning contributions throughout the campaign.
The summer of celebration following Liverpool’s 20th title, equalling Manchester United’s record, was shattered by two devastating events that rocked the club and its supporters.
During the title parade, 54-year-old Paul Doyle crashed his car into supporters on Water Street, injuring more than 130 people, with Doyle subsequently jailed for 21 years and six months.
Then on 3 July, striker Diogo Jota, aged 28, was killed in a car crash in the Spanish province of Zamora, along with his 25-year-old brother Andre Silva.
Jota’s song is now sung in the 20th minute of every Liverpool game, a tribute to the popular striker who wore the number 20 shirt throughout his time at the club.
The £450m summer spending spree that followed the title triumph, rather than strengthening the squad, ultimately left it mediocre and unbalanced according to widespread assessment.
Liverpool signed £125m British record signing Alexander Isak from Newcastle United, £116m Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen and £70m Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt among numerous high-profile arrivals.
Isak arrived unfit, then suffered a groin injury, and when he did play he looked listless and off the pace before breaking a leg while scoring in a victory at Tottenham Hotspur in December.
Wirtz, deployed behind the strikers in a role that disrupted Liverpool’s midfield, was shifted around the pitch as Slot searched for solutions without ever finding consistent answers.
Liverpool also failed to sign Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi, with Manchester City subsequently acquiring the England defender in January for £20m, reportedly £15m less than Liverpool had belatedly agreed to pay.
Slot described Guehi as a “great signing” after the defender was outstanding in Manchester City’s win at Anfield, a comment that highlighted the painful consequences of that failed pursuit.
Mohamed Salah’s infamous “thrown under the bus” outburst at Elland Road after being left on the bench at Leeds United in December significantly increased pressure on the head coach.
Salah’s further public outpouring after a 4-2 loss at Aston Villa added to the noise around Slot at precisely the moment he could least afford further distraction from outside.
Virgil van Dijk, meanwhile, became error-strewn this season after captaining Liverpool to the title in imperious fashion, his air of invincibility disappearing as he was regularly exposed defensively.
The season deteriorated sharply after Crystal Palace scored an injury-time goal at Selhurst Park in September, inflicting Liverpool’s first defeat and triggering a prolonged run of damaging results.
Substitute decisions that worked so effectively in the title-winning campaign now appeared desperate, with Slot’s post-match assessments referencing “positives” that most observers struggled to identify.
Now, just one year after being celebrated as the man who successfully followed Jurgen Klopp, Arne Slot has departed Anfield with Liverpool’s season in ruins.
