Gary Neville has reacted to Arne Slot’s comments on Liverpool’s upcoming summer transfer plans, with the ex-Manchester United defender offering his outspoken take, as always.
It’s fair to say the 2025/26 season, from a Liverpool perspective, has been a bitterly disappointing campaign to swallow, after the ecstasy of Arne Slot‘s debut offerings.
Indeed, the under-fire Dutchman would immediately come in and guide the Merseyside giants to the Premier League title last season, but this time around, it has been a shambles, with no trophies set to come to Anfield at all, after Slot side. were eliminated out of the Champions League after 4-0 defeat on aggregate by Paris St-Germain on Tuesday night.
It’s set to be a summer of much change, therefore, as Liverpool will no doubt try to spend big in the transfer market once more.
With both Andy Robertson and Mohamed Salah leaving on free transfers, it is paramount that the Reds replace these long-standing servants effectively, with the likes of Yan Diomande from RB Leipzig reportedly on their radar, to replace the magical Egyptian.
But, off the back of splashing out £446m on recruits last summer in the form of Florian Wirtz and the now injury-stricken Hugo Ekitike, to name but a few, Slot has opened up about the prospect of Liverpool having to sell to finance some high-profile arrivals, in his post-match comments after the PSG defeat.
Slot’s comments after the PSG defeat
Slot would cut a frustrated figure when dissecting this second leg loss, with Ekitike now set to be out for the rest of the season, and beyond, with a horrible Achilles injury.
Alongside this anguish being present on the ex-Feyenoord head coach’s face, the 47-year-old would also be upfront about what Liverpool’s transfer policy will look like, as we enter into a pivotal off-season on Merseyside.
He said rather honestly to Amazon Prime, right after the second leg defeat: “We are losing Mo and Andy Robertson on a free transfer, as we lost Trent on a free transfer, and this model of the club means that we have to sell, usually, to buy.
“It’s a big challenge. It was already last season and it’s going to be a challenge in the summer again. But this club has also shown many times that this model works and we can be very successful.
“We have signed very good and talented players. Let’s hope they are all fit, and most of them go into their second season in the Premier League.
“As I said many times, the future looks very good, especially if we can add a few good signings after good players leave this summer.”
It remains to be seen who Liverpool would look to cash in on, to appropriately balance the books, with Sky Sports’ Gary Neville offering his frank take on Slot’s comments when appearing on the latest Stick to Football podcast.
“I’m thinking, who could you sell?” – Neville’s response to Slot’s comments
In an ideal reality, Liverpool would be parting ways with both Robertson and Salah, knowing they’d bagged a pretty penny for their services.
Instead, both long-term servants will be departing the club for nothing, with a worry surely in the air that Virgil Van Dijk will run down his contract in much the same way next season.
With how poorly Liverpool have fared this season, too, it’s not a given that any of Slot’s first-team personnel will be moving on for major bucks in the summer, with Neville offering this blunt take on proceedings when chatting about Slot’s remarks.
The direct ex-defender said, on the latest Stick To Football episode: “Arne Slot, there’s a quote after the game, which I watched his interview this morning. And you talk about, the club has sold eight or ten players to make money to sign five, or sold very talented players, but we have to sell to buy.
“And we’re now losing some players on a free transfer. I just thought last night, I don’t know if I’m reading too much into it, and whether it’s out of context, but it’s the idea that in the summer they’ll have to sell to buy. I’m thinking, who could you sell?”
Neville does raise a fair point here, as it’s not entirely obvious, when casting your eye over the Liverpool first team ranks, who would be sacrificed to help bump up the summer transfer kitty.
The transfer window ahead will be a fascinating one to keep tabs on from a Reds perspective, as life without Robertson and Salah hopefully brings about a positive new dawn.
