'Sell to buy' - Under-fire Arne Slot warns fans 'good players' will leave Liverpool after Champions League failure

The Reds' European dreams were extinguished on Tuesday night as PSG secured a comfortable 4-0 aggregate victory, winning 2-0 on the night at Anfield. Despite a massive £450 million investment in the squad last summer - which saw the arrivals of Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, and Milos Kerkez - Reds have fallen short of expectations. The failure to kick on will likely result in plenty of departures in the summer, with Slot anticipating a "big challenge" when the transfer window reopens.

Speaking after the defeat to PSG, Slot was candid about the financial realities facing the club this summer. He emphasised that the current model requires significant departures to fund any further incoming talent. "That is what we have to play for now in the coming weeks," Slot told Amazon Prime. "The good thing is Alex (Isak) is back, well able to make minutes. Much has been said that the club is in a transition. The club has sold eight or 10 players to make money to sign five or so very talented players. We have to sell to buy. We are losing some players on a free transfer. It is a big challenge in the summer but the club has shown this model works. As I said many times the future looks very good, especially if we can sign players after good players leaving this summer."

The exodus has already begun with club legends Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson expected to depart as free agents when their contracts expire. However, they are unlikely to be the only high-profile casualties of the upcoming rebuild. Ibrahima Konate is also reaching the end of his deal, while the likes of Curtis Jones and Wataru Endo have been heavily linked with moves away from Merseyside.

Speculation is also mounting regarding the club's core stars. Reports in Italy suggest Alisson Becker is a primary target for Juventus, while Alexis Mac Allister has been the subject of persistent transfer rumours throughout the second half of the season. With Slot under pressure to deliver results, no player appears to be completely safe from the impending overhaul.

The idea that Liverpool are in a "transition" phase has not sat well with everyone, particularly given their status as champions just 12 months ago. Former Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney, speaking as a pundit for Amazon Prime, was quick to criticise the narrative coming out of the club following their European exit.

"I think you're talking about rebuilds… they were champions last season," Rooney stated. "They won the league last season and they spent an awful amount of money to try and make the squad better. There's certainly been faults from, whether that's recruitment, obviously they've had players out injured but you shouldn't be talking about a rebuild when you've just won the Premier League. They've lost some really good players, you can see why the fans were so upset when they lost Trent."

Next up for the Reds is a Merseyside derby clash with Everton, the first at the Hill Dickinson Stadium. Lose that and the pressure will crank up a notch on Slot, who is already reportedly fighting to save his job as his side risks missing out on a spot in next season's Champions League - an outcome that could ultimately be fatal for the Dutchman's tenure.