Return of Alexander Isak is all well and good, but it will not redeem a season of sustained underperformance
?The failure is big,? said Ryan Gravenberch as he digested the Champions League defeat by Paris Saint-Germain that ensured Liverpool?s season will finish trophyless. It was a more appropriate description of the team?s plight than Arne Slot?s insistence the future looks bright and a reality the head coach cannot avoid whether Champions League qualification for next season is secured or not. As it must be.
Failure is unthinkable for a club whose business model depends on its lucrative revenue streams and a team that, 12 months ago, was about to win the Premier League title at a canter and was then remodelled to the tune of almost ?450m. With the top five all qualifying, Chelsea fading from the conversation under Liam Rosenior and a five-point advantage over Brentford and Everton with six games to play, it would be a humiliating final blow for Liverpool to miss out. Slot?s defence for getting a third season to manage Liverpool?s transition would be holed.
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