Arne Slot's position at Liverpool continues to come under the spotlight following a series of disastrous results. Heavy defeats to Manchester City, Nottingham Forest and PSV this month have left the Premier League champions with just three victories from their past 12 outings across all competitions.
The latest two defeats - both at Anfield by three-goal margins - have proved the final straw for many, with Liverpool now stuck in mid-table in the Premier League and Champions League standings. A kind run of fixtures could ease the mounting pressure, starting with this weekend's trip to West Ham United.
But further setbacks against sides Liverpool could crank up the pressure even further. Regarding potential successors, former manager Jurgen Klopp remains a topic of discussion, whilst a caretaker appointment may be plausible outcome until the conclusion of the current campaign - although Mirror Football understands the Liverpool manager is not in any immediate danger of the sack at present.
With all this in mind, Mirror Football has compiled the latest developments surrounding Slot's future, Klopp's situation and the sack verdicts being delivered.
Jamie Carragher delivered a scathing verdict on Slot, with the Liverpool legend insisting the manager must secure seven points from upcoming clashes with West Ham, Sunderland and Leeds United.
"Arne Slot has a week to save his job," he declared in his Telegraph column, setting a clear deadline for the manager's survival. "No matter how much goodwill the manager has, Liverpool Football Club cannot sustain the drop in standards witnessed over the past three months.
"No one knows better than me how much that reality will be hurting everyone connected with my old club. Liverpool do not willingly sack coaches, especially those that bring great success.
"After Slot won the Premier League in his first season, he seemed destined for a long stay on Merseyside too. Now, just six months later, he is hanging on." Carragher had earlier declared that Slot's continued selection of Ibrahima Konate, who has made frequent mistakes this season, constitutes a "sackable offence".
After the 4-1 thrashing by PSV in the Champions League, Slot issued a defiant statement regarding his position at Liverpool. "I am feeling safe, I am OK," he said.
"I have got a lot of support from above. It would be nice to turn it around and get a victory, of course, but if you are not doing well, then it is normal that questions are asked.
"I am OK with my position. It is not the first time I've been in a difficult position, but it is about time that we turned it around.
"I'm not worried. What I mean by that is my focus is on other things than on my own position. I need to do better, and that's what I'm trying to do every single day."
The next day, Slot faced further questions about whether he would remain in charge. "We've had the same conversations as we've had since I've been here," he said.
"We fight on. And we try to improve, that is what we all try. The conversations have been the same as the last 18 months.
"Let down by the players? No, not at all. Although I do agree that our standards, the team, have not been at the standard we're used to. We think we can play better than we do. The focus is on the team not the individuals. If the opposite is happening, we look at the team not the individuals.
"It's not easy to say what I can do different. If you win, lose or draw you reflect on decisions you do in the week, maybe you do it more if you lose. We try to find the answer we need to win a game.
"In the end it's about doing what this club is about - keep fighting, we have to fight together. It would also be nice if we reward ourselves in the moments we play well, because there are large parts when we do. Every small mistake or error leads to us conceding a goal."
Klopp has opened up publicly on numerous occasions regarding his future beyond Liverpool and potential comebacks to management. Most recently, during the Diary of a CEO podcast in October, Klopp revealed that it was "theoretically possible" he could one day return to Liverpool.
Before that, the German manager seemed to indicate he harbours no such desires and is thoroughly relishing his time away from the beautiful game. "Not at all," he admitted in 2024 when asked if he waits by the television for games to start.
"I was super happy with the way Liverpool performed. I watched some games. But it is not like, 'Oh, it's Saturday!'".
"I didn't know when games started. I was just out. I played sports. We enjoyed life, spent time with the grandkids, completely normal stuff, knowing I will work again. But knowing as well, that I don't want to work as a coach anymore."
Asked whether he believes he will never be a coach again, Klopp responded: "That's what I think. But you don't know. I'm 58. If I started again at 65, everybody will say, 'You said you'll never do it again!' Er, sorry, I thought 100 per cent (when I said it)! That is what I think now. I don't miss anything [about being a manager]."
German journalists have delivered a brutal verdict on Slot's situation whilst sharing their views on Klopp's future. BILD reporter Marcel Reif recently declared: "Liverpool isn't just in a mess. It's practically burned to the ground!".
"The timing of this statement (Klopp on Diary of a CEO) is terrible for Slot. He's hovering over Anfield like a UFO. All of Liverpool would carry him back on their shoulders. And it would be negligent if they didn't try to bring Klopp back.
"In Liverpool, the scar from his departure is far from healed. I don't know what it's like being Global Head of Soccer and whether you ever start to wonder, 'Is this really me?'
"He was exhausted after that time. It took its toll. Now he looks very rested. Almost as if Arne Slot has to watch out.."
Bayern Munich chief Uli Hoeness claimed he does not expect Klopp to remain in his position as head of global soccer with the Red Bull group. "I could never imagine him as an official travelling around the country, to New York, looking after the various teams," he said via BILD.
"And I don't think that will be a good model in the long run. I also don't think he'll do that forever, I can't imagine it.
"I have always admired Jurgen Klopp as a coach who is on the pitch, who develops a team, who moves a team forward with his personality. I see Jurgen Klopp on the pitch and nowhere else."