‘It was a dream situation… now it’s not like that anymore’: Graeme Souness warns Arne Slot and names the HIGHEST position Liverpool will achieve – but praises new manager for Jarrell Quansah’s approach to the game

Greame Souness does not believe Liverpool will improve on last season’s third-place finish under Arne Slot this season.

Slot replaced legendary manager Jurgen Klopp and made a winning start last weekend as the Reds beat newly promoted Ipswich Town 2-0 at Portman Road.

When Klopp announced his departure in January, it seemed his successor had a solid foundation to build on, with Liverpool still in contention for an unprecedented Quadruple.

But they slumped towards the end of the season, finishing with just the Carabao Cup. Since then, they have failed to sign a single player this summer, leaving Souness in doubt as to whether they can continue this season.

Speaking on Three Up Front, William Hill’s new podcast with Simon Jordan and Troy Deeney, Souness said: ‘Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool came third last year and everyone said what a fantastic manager he was and what a tune he got out of those players. He got the most out of those players and still came third.

Arne Slot made a winning start for Liverpool as his team beat Ipswich last week

He wants to build on the foundations laid by Jürgen Klopp after his departure at the end of last season.

Souness does not believe Liverpool will do better than last season with Slot at the helm

‘I think Arne Slot still needs reinforcements in certain areas, because if Klopp couldn’t do it with the same group of players, wouldn’t they finish better than third? I don’t think so.

‘Last season I thought the next manager after Klopp would be in a dream situation, I don’t think it’s such a dream situation anymore. They didn’t put their foot down when it really mattered last season and they had a Premier League title to win with 10 games to go.

‘The track is still great and Slot will enter a locker room full of energy and life, but it’s not as dreamy as it was.’

Despite not setting high expectations, Souness still believes Liverpool can have a strong season in their first campaign after Klopp’s departure, and outlined realistic targets for Slot to achieve.

‘A top four finish should be the absolute minimum for Arne Slot this season,’ Souness added.

‘His goal must be to play well in the Champions League, reach the semi-finals and also have a good season in the Premier League.’

Slot raised eyebrows on Saturday when he replaced Jarell Quansah with Ibrahima Konate at half-time.

It seemed like a brutal decision from Quansah, but Slot stuck to his decision. After the match he indicated that the young defender had lost too many duels in the first half.

Slot took Jarell Quansah off at half-time in his first match, because he was not happy with the fact that the defender was losing so many duels

Ibrahima Konate (left) came on and made a positive impression, and Souness was impressed with Slot’s bold decision so early in his Liverpool coaching career

Final’s decision paid off: Liverpool played a lot better after the break and won effortlessly. Souness was also pleased with what the Dutchman saw on the sidelines in his first 90 minutes.

“I thought it was good that Arne Slot decided to take Jarell Quansah off the pitch at half-time because he saw something that wasn’t working,” said Souness.

“It’s just a big decision when you bring someone off the bench that you’re not sure about. It wasn’t a brave decision, it was a wise decision.”

‘Liverpool still have a lot of challenges ahead of them, but it was a great first game against a newly promoted side and they did what they had to do: deal with Ipswich in the first hour.’