Real Madrid hand under-pressure Arne Slot the MASSIVE favour he needed

Real Madrid have done a massive favour for Arne Slot. Even if it wasn't their intention to help out the Liverpool boss.

The pressure is mounting on Arne Slot as Liverpool's form fell off a cliff this season. In truth, that poor form really goes back to the start of the year - the Reds have won around 50 per cent of their matches since February kicked off.

The last few games have given a bit of promise. Liverpool haven't lost any of their last five, stopping an unbelievable rot that saw them lose consistently unlike any other period since the early 1950s.

But the recent performances haven't fixed things. The win over Inter was a massive step in the right direction but it came after dropping points against newly-promoted teams back-to-back.

The pressure is still very much there and Slot is working hard to get things back on track. Until that happens, his position is under some sort of threat.

So with that in mind, Real Madrid have done him a real favour this week.

Xabi Alonso's future

There was widespread speculation that Xabi Alonso was to be sacked as Real Madrid head coach if he lost to Manchester City in midweek. There's a sense that he's not the right fit for the club, nor does he appear to have the total backing of the players.

Now, it turned out that the result wasn't enough to get him sacked. Real Madrid lost 2-1 but Alonso remains in the role - and the suggestion is that he could get the next few games.

AS report that his status hangs by a threat and that one or two more poor results over the next few weeks will see him off. Though, they also said that about the City match.

Regardless, it's a boost for Slot as the last thing he needs right now is Alonso being available. That would bring incredible pressure on top of him if only because the Spaniard looks like a perfect fit at Anfield.

A beloved former player who won a top-five league as a manager, who also happens to have got the best out of Florian Wirtz. He's also the man that Liverpool almost certainly had at the top of their shortlist to replace Jurgen Klopp before appointing Slot.

Alonso has spoken publicly about potentially managing in the Premier League, too, where he specifically pointed out 'his former club'. It would be a lot for Slot to contend with if the negative results kept coming.

Instead, Real Madrid's decision to persist for now gives Slot a bit more time to right the ship. There's no question that he's the best person for the job if he gets things firing again and that he'd have the full backing of everyone if he manages that.

But there will likely be a time when Alonso is lurking in the background for this job. If Slot hasn't sorted it out by then, things will become very difficult.

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