Arne Slot says Liverpool’s turbulent season can only be properly judged once the campaign concludes later this month.
The Reds boss admits he and his players still have much to prove as they push to secure Champions League qualification.
Liverpool face Manchester United on Sunday, aiming to draw level on points with Michael Carrick’s side, who sit third behind Manchester City and Arsenal.
It has been a difficult season, with 10 defeats matching their highest tally in a decade, though three straight wins have eased pressure ahead of key fixtures against United, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Brentford.
Five points from the final 12 available will secure a top-four finish, and Liverpool could confirm Champions League qualification this weekend if results elsewhere go their way and they win at Old Trafford.
“How do I rate the season? It depends on the outcome,” saysArne Slot. “I will judge myself in four games.
“Of course, I am judging myself constantly – was it the right decision to play five at the back in Paris [against PSG]? Was it the right decision to play him, play him, play him?
“That is what you are constantly where you are and these are the questions you are asking yourself. Was it the right decision to train 11 v 11 today or should we go small-sided games?
“It is an ongoing process, you have to make 30, 40, 50 choices every single day and you try to judge them but, in the end, you can say: ‘OK, how was this season?’
“I already have a certain opinion about that but the outcome of the next four games could make a massive difference in the way I judge myself over this season.”
Slot added: “We as a team still have something to prove and I am part of the team, so that means I have something to prove as well, which we know.
“That is the football world, every day we have something to prove. But it is up to others to judge if a quarter-final place in the Champions League has been good or bad.
“Losing to PSG twice in a row – they are the best team in Europe in my opinion. Is it a reality to go through the league and the cups having the amount of players we have [out].
“I have a certain opinion about that and the way I say it gives you an impression of how I feel about it but I haven’t said it.
“Do I have to prove myself as Virgil van Dijk does? Yes he has proven himself as one of the best and Mo Salah and we all have to prove ourselves but we’ve already shown in the past what we’re able to do.
“It doesn’t mean that is enough to keep playing every three days or stay in your job. If a player won the the Premier League the last five years, he needs to show up every week to stay in the team.
“That is how this industry works, so yeah, we – and I am part of ‘we’ – have to prove ourselves the week after and the week after. And then in pre-season again and it just goes on and on.”
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