Jamie Carragher piles pressure on Arne Slot with Liverpool Champions League claim

Jamie Carragher has heaped the pressure on Arne Slot ahead of his first season in charge of Liverpool by insisting the Reds have a chance of winning the Champions League.

Slot will take charge of Liverpool for the first time in a competitive game on Saturday when he leads his new side into the 2024/25 Premier League season. The Reds make the journey to newly promoted Ipswich Town, where they will be looking to set the tone for the campaign.

Expectations have perhaps been raised after a positive pre-season, which included wins over Arsenal and Manchester United, and was capped off by a 4-1 victory over Sevilla at Anfield on Sunday. A behind-closed-doors game against Las Palmas, played with what many might consider to be a largely second-string XI, finished goalless on the same day.

READ MORE: Liverpool transfer news LIVE: Zubimendi latest, Clark's cryptic message, Nunez breaks silence

READ MORE: Martin Zubimendi set to make Liverpool transfer decision after 'Arne Slot phone call'

It might be difficult to gauge what would constitute a successful first season for Slot as he takes over from Jurgen Klopp. The Reds though are back in the Champions League, indicating how Klopp managed to turn things around after a disappointing 2022/23 campaign.

Ahead of the opening game, former defender Carragher is not about to give Slot a free pass for his first season in charge.

“We’re in a position where we’re all surprised and pleased that Liverpool had such a good season last year, off the back of a poor one, but with Liverpool we’ve got some of the best players in Europe,” Carragher said as part of Sky Sports’ Start of Season campaign. “We’re bringing a good manager in, and I’m sure we’ll bring one or two players in, and we have a big squad.

“The idea of Liverpool having a year off and letting the manager settle in is something I don’t agree with. We did that when I played, whenever a manager came in it was a five-year plan.

“For me, this doesn’t happen at other clubs who have had success like Chelsea, Manchester United, or Manchester City – you’ve got a new manager and of course you have to give him time to adapt, but I want us to challenge on all fronts, we’re Liverpool. We have a realistic chance of winning the Champions League, and that’s the pressure of managing Liverpool.

“I’m sure the manager will be thinking that he needs to get top four, and it would be lovely to win a trophy – that would be a great season. I just want us to make sure that we compete for everything. We didn’t win everything under Jurgen Klopp, but we competed.”

Jamie Carragher was speaking on behalf of Sky Sports as part of its start of season football campaign which brings together 92 passionate football fans from each team across the Premier League & EFL to share their hopes for the 2024/25 season.