Former Liverpool winger, Jermaine Pennant, has taken to a fiery rant on TalkSport about Mohamed Salah’s statement on Arne Slot, claiming, “If this board think this is the guy to stay in charge, then there’s something wrong with the board.”
Having come through a high-performing culture built on sustained success, Pennant brings valuable elite-level experience. He was part of Arsene Wenger’s broader Arsenal setup during their legendary 2003-04 unbeaten season starting the campaign with a Community Shield win before heading out on loan to Leeds United.
He came into Liverpool after their 2006 FA Cup win and started for Liverpool in the 2007 Champions League final.
As a former player, he has backed the Liverpool squad, stating, “These players do not win a league and then go bad overnight.” He places the blame on the hands of Arne Slot.
Liverpool’s struggles this season
Liverpool are heading into the final game of the season and need a positive result to get Champions League football for next season. Having won the league last season, fans of other clubs have claimed that this may be the worst title defence in Premier League history.”
Pennant, in his TalkSport segment, claimed that “they broke nearly every single record, which is not good.” A win on Sunday would see them finish on 62 points, a massive drop from their 84 points last season.
Further in his interview, the former winger claimed: “The stats are shocking.” Liverpool scored 86 goals in their 2024/25 title win, conceding 41 goals. With one game to go, they have scored 24 fewer goals and conceded 11 more.
Where does the fault lie?
Often in football, a lot is put on the plate of the manager, when it is the players on the pitch who are there putting out the performance.
On the other hand, Pennant claims, “It’s down to philosophy and how Liverpool play, because they are playing like a mid-table team.”
The team do not appear to be controlling games in the manner that they were last year. Pennant referenced how Liverpool invite pressure onto them this season.
In Salah’s statement of how things are at Liverpool, he made reference to heavy metal football. A statement of Jurgen Klopp’s time at Liverpool. The TalkSport panel claimed that he knew what he was doing with that comment and was putting pressure on the board.
The England international also spoke about the club’s depth and Arne Slot’s team selection; “I have not seen a team of 11 all season play in their solid position.” He did accept that there were some injuries in the squad this year, but players were sitting on the bench who could fill these positions, rather than shifting his best players like Dominik Szoboszlai and Florian Wirtz to fit.
The former England international also took aim at the club’s depth and Slot’s tactical rigidity. “I have not seen a team of 11 all season play in their solid position,” Pennant argued. While acknowledging a brutal injury crisis, he questioned why Slot chose to constantly shift world-class talent like Dominik Szoboszlai and blockbuster summer signing Florian Wirtz out of their natural roles to plug holes, rather than trusting the depth players sitting on the bench.
Despite Fenway Sports Group (FSG) backing Slot heavily in the transfer market with a massive summer spend, the manager has looked completely unable to construct a cohesive system. With reports emerging that FSG is already monitoring potential replacements like Andoni Iraola, the tension at Anfield has reached a boiling point.
ReadLiverpoolfc Verdict
What we are witnessing is an absolute disaster class in title retention. To drop from 84 points to a potential maximum of 62 is not just a standard post-championship hangover it is a total systemic collapse. Pennant is completely right to highlight the tactical identity crisis.
Watching this team transition from a terrifying, high-pressing machine into a passive, mid-table setup that leaks goals for fun has been agonizing.
While Mohamed Salah’s decision to air the club’s dirty laundry on social media has divided pundits, it’s hard to blame a living legend for cracking.
He is looking at a dressing room that won the league a year ago under a blueprint that worked, only to watch it get dismantled by rigid tactics and bizarre squad rotation. Moving marquee signings like Wirtz out of position while capable squad players rot on the bench is entirely on Slot.
FSG reportedly hesitating over a contract extension speaks volumes the hierarchy clearly smells smoke. Competing in Europe’s elite competition is the bare minimum requirement for a club of this stature.
If Slot cannot guarantee that, and has simultaneously lost the faith of his most iconic players, FSG must cut their losses this summer. Change is desperately needed before this mid-table mentality becomes permanently ingrained in Anfield’s DNA.
