‘He would be perfect’ – Liverpool urged to hire former Chelsea manager to replace Arne Slot

Liverpool have been advised to sack Premier League title-winning manager Arne Slot and hire a ‘perfect’ former Chelsea boss as his replacement.

Slot guided Liverpool to the Premier League glory less than 12 months ago but is now facing an uphill battle to avoid the sack.

Liverpool’s title defence never got going, with the Reds slipping to fifth in the table, 21 points adrift of leaders Arsenal.

Not only will Liverpool fail to defend their Premier League title but they may also finish outside of the top-five and miss out on Champions League football altogether.

This season’s Champions League represents a chance for Liverpool to salvage their poor campaign but Slot’s side were beaten 2-0 by PSG in the first leg of their quarter-final tie on Wednesday night.

Elimination from Europe could spark Liverpool to sack Slot and World Cup winner Marco Materazzi has named ex-Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca as the ‘perfect’ replacement.

Maresca led Chelsea to a fourth-place finish in the Premier League and to the Conference League title in his one and only season at Stamford Bridge.

The Italian, who has long been earmarked as a possible replacement for his mentor Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, left Chelsea in January just a few months after winning the Club World Cup in the summer.

Discussing the clubs Maresca could join as he looks to return to management, Materazzi told Hajper: ‘Can Enzo Maresca make Real Madrid into champions again? Yes, why not!

‘He speaks very good Spanish because he was at Sevilla, but I think Maresca also has a good opportunity to get a job in the Premier League for next season too.

‘Newcastle United? Not for me. Manchester United would be a good move for Maresca but he’s too connected to Manchester City to make that happen.

‘I think Liverpool would be the best fit for Enzo Maresca. He is the perfect coach to lead a rebuild at Liverpool to create a new vision for the team.’

PSG knocked Liverpool out of the Champions League last season on their way to winning the competition and are on course to do the same after winning 2-0 at the Parc des Princes.

Desire Doue’s deflected strike gave the hosts an early lead and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia doubled PSG’s advantage with a moment of brilliance in the second half.

Speaking after the match, in which Liverpool failed to register an attempt on target, Anfield captain Virgil van Dijk said: ‘It was tough.

‘Tough work, which was expected. I think we defended with a lot of bodies around the box. Unfortunately, the first goal is a deflection.

‘We had some small moments on the break where we could have done better. Obviously I’m not happy losing here whatsoever, the only positive thing is that we have another game to play next week.

‘We shouldn’t forget we play against the European champions of last season and you see the quality they have in the games that they played already this season, in the league and also in the Champions League.

‘We know how good they can be, it doesn’t really matter away or home – so we have to be absolutely spot on with everything we do. Hopefully our fans can play a big part in that as well.

‘I’ve been through many special evenings at Anfield, I’m very lucky and privileged, and our fans, that’s the backbone of the club and hopefully they can be there for us again.’

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