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Are Hughes & Edwards Waiting on Alonso to Fail?

Liverpool’s recent uptick in form has changed the temperature around Anfield, if not the conversation entirely. Results have steadied, performances have improved, and Arne Slot’s pivot toward a diamond midfield has at least restored a sense of control that was badly missing through the early months of the season. For the first time in a while, Liverpool looks like a team that understands where its next pass is coming from and where its defensive protection lives.

Still, I remain unconvinced that what we’re seeing is anything more than a functional correction rather than a long-term solution, especially given how long it took to bring to the fore a system that so many could see was needed.

A Familiar Tactical Pivot, A Temporary Calm

Slot’s diamond has done what it needed to do: protect a fragile back line, reduce the volume of counter-attacks conceded, and give technically gifted midfielders clearer reference points. Dominik Szoboszlai’s energy, Alexis Mac Allister’s rhythm, Curtis Jones’ intelligence, and the freedom afforded to Florian Wirtz have created a structure that feels coherent again.

But this feels eerily familiar.

It reminds me of Brendan Rodgers’ post-Suárez, when pragmatism replaced ideology not because it was the plan, but because it was the only way to survive. Rodgers abandoned his preferred 4-3-3 for a back three to paper over cracks that had formed through poor squad planning and a lack of foresight. It worked… briefly. It stabilised results. It bought time. It did not, however, change the inevitable outcome.

Slot’s diamond feels similar, in many respects. Encouraging, yes. Sustainable, I’m not convinced by the brief but much-needed response. This squad was built to overwhelm teams with width, intensity, and chaos. What we’re seeing now is containment football executed by elite players, not a philosophy embedded into the fabric of the team. That matters when executives are assessing whether this is a coach to build around or one to eventually move on from.

Which brings us neatly to the bigger question.

Watching Madrid While Managing Anfield

Michael Edwards’ admiration for Xabi Alonso is not a secret. It predates Alonso’s move to Real Madrid and stretches back to his transformative work at Bayer Leverkusen. Alonso’s ability to blend tactical clarity with emotional intelligence made him an obvious long-term Liverpool candidate in waiting. His use of a fluid back three, dynamic wing-backs, and technically dominant midfielders aligns frighteningly well with Liverpool’s current squad profile.

The irony is that the players who look revitalised under Slot’s diamond—Wirtz and Szoboszlai in particular—are tailor-made for Alonso’s system.

At Real Madrid, however, the early warning signs are familiar. Dressing room resistance. Galáctico egos. A hierarchy that rarely bends to the manager, despite their two-year chase to appoint him. History tells us Madrid is unforgiving to coaches who do not win immediately and emphatically. If Alonso fails to secure either La Liga or the Champions League, the noise will grow quickly.

And that’s where Hughes and Edwards may simply be waiting.

I struggle to believe Liverpool’s hierarchy will make a definitive long-term commitment to Slot without seeing how this season plays out elsewhere. If Alonso becomes available, even briefly, Liverpool would be negligent not to consider him. A left-sided centre-back and a genuine defensive midfielder would complete a squad already primed for his ideas.

Slot may yet stabilise this season. He may even secure silverware. But the calm feels provisional, not permanent.

For now, Liverpool tread water. Quietly improving. Quietly observing. And quite possibly waiting for the man they truly want.

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