The Liverpool cult hero who can SAVE the season | OneFootball

Liverpool need change right now and they can appoint a cult hero to save the season.

Something simply has to happen. Liverpool cannot go on a run as bad as this without any repercussions. It's as simple as that.

Arne Slot's side have won just 50% of their last 42 matches. In that time they have suffered 17 defeats. That's a remarkable statistic. Liverpool are not used to losing this many games at such a short period of time.

It's even more remarkable given the depth of talent in this squad. Something has gone awry.

Should Slot's job be under threat? Absolutely. But does he deserve to be fired? The question is difficult to answer.

It might be easier if there were some genuinely solid candidates in the running for the job. The truth of the matter is that there's no one of the ilk to takeover.

You can have fantasies about Jurgen Klopp coming back, but that seems unlikely at this stage.

If Slot isn't dismissed then how can Liverpool move forward? Well, the answer could be changes in the backroom staff.

Liverpool may need fresher ideas. Someone who can come in alongside Slot and figure out what is going on. Sometimes even just a new perspective is enough to kick things into gear.

Just look at the turnaround Manchester City have had this season with Pep Lijnders and Kolo Toure as the two assistant managers.

Well, Liverpool could do the same by appointing a former cult hero in Albert Riera. A former Liverpool winger, Riera was a favourite at the Kop for his technical qualities and some spectacular goals that he scored.

Now he's embarked on an intriguing coaching journey in Slovenia, where he has enjoyed success that is impossible to ignore.

The Spaniard guided Olimpija Ljubljana to a league title in the 2022/23 campaign. He then joined NK Celje and set them on their way to a league title before leaving the Slovenian side to join Bordeaux.

Taking over the French side languishing in Ligue 2, Riera did an impressive job. Despite the club's financial struggles he managed to put them into the kind of form that would have seen them qualify for the play-offs to earn promotion into Ligue 1.

Unfortunately, due to Bordeaux going into administration they were still relegated and Riera left to join Celje.

At Celje he won the Slovenian Cup last season and also led the side to the Europa Conference League where he led his side to the quarter-finals of the competition, which is extremely impressive.

This season, he's unbeaten in the Europa Conference League again and he's doing all of this while playing an extremely attractive possession-based style.

Right now, Riera seems like one of the most innovative coaches in the game who is going seriously under the radar.

Bringing him in as an assistant to Slot could be enough to save Liverpool's season. He's shown he can work under difficult circumstances and get the maximum out of his team.