Arne Slot says he’s not worried about his job depending on Liverpool making the Champions League this spring, but let’s be honest, he’d rather not find out the hard way.

From what we saw here, he probably won’t have to. Liverpool finally snapped Sunderland’s unbeaten home run in the Premier League this season. Now they’re just three points behind Manchester United in fourth and two behind Chelsea in fifth. Things are heating up.

Régis Le Bris’s Sunderland side put up a real fight. They’re smart, well-drilled, and hard to break down. Still, with Florian Wirtz running the show and growing in confidence, Liverpool edged it. Virgil van Dijk’s header from Mo Salah’s corner did the trick. The only sour note for Slot? Wataru Endo picked up a nasty-looking ankle injury.

The game started sslowly Both teams looked pretty cautious, especially with the rain hammering down at the Stadium of Light. No one wanted to make an early mistake, so the first half felt tense and cagey.

Liverpool had plenty of the ball but kept running into Sunderland’s organised defence. Around the half-hour mark, Wirtz finally broke through, taking a pass from Alex Mac Allister, settling himself, and firing from the edge of the box. Robin Roefs saved that one, then breathed a sigh of relief moments later when another Wirtz effort hit the post after Andy Robertson’s cross sliced open the defence.

Wirtz started pulling the strings more and more, and Salah kept giving Reinildo something to worry about. Le Bris had reason to look a bit nervous, but Sunderland weren’t just hanging on. Their attacking movement was tricky and unpredictable, and they stayed right in the contest.

Still, you could tell they missed their captain, Granit Xhaka. He’s usually their heartbeat, but with him out injured, Enzo Le Fée dropped back next to Noah Sadiki in midfield. Le Fée read the game beautifully and broke up attack after attack, just as Wirtz began showing why Slot wanted him from Leverkusen last summer.

Right before halftime, there was a brief VAR check for a possible penalty after Brian Brobbey tangled with Ibrahima Konaté in the box. Stockley Park saw nothing wrong, but Le Bris was clearly annoyed, waving at the referee about a shirt pull.

Maybe that frustration fired Sunderland up. They came out strong after the break, seeing more of the ball and making Liverpool look a bit sluggish. Passing was off, the tempo dropped, but Sunderland couldn’t really test Alisson except for a 25-yard blast from Trai Hume that whistled just wide.

Liverpool held out through a spell of heavy pressure almost as heavy as the rain pouring down outside. Dan Ballard made a crucial block to deny Wirtz, but you could feel a goal coming. And then it did: Salah whipped in a corner, Van Dijk powered in a header, and Habib Diarra helped it over the line.

There was a long delay after that as Endo went down in real pain, his ankle twisted badly. Medical staff gave him treatment, then stretchered him off. Joe Gomez came on to replace him. A rough end to Endo’s first Premier League start of the season.

After that, Konate handled Brobbey’s physical challenge, and Nordi Mukiele wasted Sunderland’s best late chance by firing wide after escaping Robertson. Le Bris threw on all his subs, but with Curtis Jones coming off the bench and helping Liverpool see things out, Slot’s team could finally relax. At the final whistle, they celebrated with hugs, some relief, some joy, and maybe a bit of hope for what’s next.

Liverpool just got a real shot in the arm as they chase Borussia Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck ahead of the summer window.

Yeah, the January transfer window barely slammed shut, but Liverpool’s already working behind the scenes, getting plans for the summer. Schlotterbeck's name keeps popping up. He’s about to hit the final year of his Dortmund contract, and that always stirs things up. People tend to listen when an important player could walk for free soon.

Now, with his future up in the air, Dortmund looks like they’re getting ready to move on. According to Bild, Dortmund scouts are already sizing up replacements. They’ve got their eye on Marco Senesi from Bournemouth, apparently.

Senesi's contract at Bournemouth runs out at the end of this season, so he’s about to become a free agent. He can even start talking to clubs outside England right now if he wants. That puts Dortmund in a good spot if they want to snap him up without a transfer fee.

So, if Dortmund really likes Senesi and they’re planning for life without Schlotterbeck, Liverpool’s path to making a move just got a lot clearer.

New boss Arne Slot and his team at Anfield definitely want to beef up their defence this summer. They already missed out on Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace; he almost joined Liverpool last year, but the deal fell apart at the last second. Instead, Guehi ended up heading to Manchester City during the January window.

That means Liverpool needs to look elsewhere for defensive reinforcements, and Schlotterbeck fits the bill.

Dortmund, for their part, still hopes Schlotterbeck signs a new deal. He hasn’t made up his mind yet, though. Last month, he told Sky Sports Germany he’s set a personal deadline—he wouldn’t say exactly when, just that it’ll be before the summer. Here’s what he said:

“I’ve set a personal deadline for myself. I won’t say when it is. Definitely before the summer, though. I feel comfortable here. It won’t be an easy decision. I’m a gut-feeling kind of guy. I’ll sit down with Dad and Keven (my brother), and then I’ll make a decision. I don’t quite know right now how it’ll turn out.”

So, for now, Liverpool waits, waits, but the signs are moving their way.