Slot: Missing out on Champions League 'not acceptable' for Liverpool

Arne Slot said it would be unacceptable for Liverpool not to qualify for the Champions League, calling this season the toughest of his managerial career “by a mile”. The Premier League champions sit sixth, five points off fourth place, though fifth is likely to yield a Champions League spot.

Liverpool, who spent almost £450m on players last summer, rely heavily on Champions League income and had won only once in seven league games before Wednesday’s visit to Sunderland. Slot pointed to the financial and sporting consequences of the club’s recent European performances, noting that “when I arrived here we could only sign Federico Chiesa and that was after a Europa League season.

That does have an enormous impact on the way this club is run, that is clear. We are completely aware.” He accepted the campaign had been unusually difficult, saying: “I don’t think I’d ever lost two games in a row...

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