Liverpool players have the strange feeling of coming back to a new head coach this summer.
For those who have been with the Reds for a few years now, they’ll have become totally used to having Jurgen Klopp as their boss.
By and large, the Liverpool squad will have already known where they stand with Klopp heading into another pre-season.
For new players this was different, obviously, as it was for the academy graduates coming through. But for the rest, they knew exactly what their role in the squad would be before a ball had even been kicked.
With Arne Slot coming in, that has now been turned upside down. Everyone now has a point to prove.
Liverpool looking for Kostas Tsimikas sale
For some players, the prospect of a new manager and coaching team coming in will be very welcome.
Those who may have slipped down the pecking order a little have a chance to redeem themselves and make a new first impression.
The likes of Sepp van den Berg and Fabio Carvalho, for example, seen as surplus to requirements under Klopp but they may now be given a second chance.
However, for others, it will signal the death knell for their time at Anfield.
READ MORE: Fabrizio Romano shares what Liverpool are planning in the transfer market after Arne Slot’s arrival
One who that looks likely to apply to is Kostas Tsimikas. The Greece international played just 25 times last season and only started twice in the final two-and-a-half months of the campaign.
As a result, there have already been question marks over Tsimikas’ future. And according to journalist Lewis Steele, there are rumblings that the left-back is on his way out.
“One we didn’t mention is probably left back with Kostas Tsimikas,” Steele told The Redmen TV.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he left this summer just based on certain things I’ve heard and just the fact he couldn’t really get a game in the second half of last season even when Andy Robertson was injured.”
Should Liverpool sell Kostas Tsimikas?
It was a funny season for Tsimikas. On the one hand, he really did struggle to get into the side by the end of the campaign.
It was fairly damning for the 28-year-old that Joe Gomez was often being selected ahead of him when Andy Robertson was out of the team.
Despite that, Tsimikas was actually really good for the initial period Robertson was injured. Having got some rhythm back in his game, the Greek played some of his best football for the club.
But then came the broken collar bone against Arsenal. If he is sold this summer, then Tsimikas can perhaps apportion part of the blame to Bukayo Saka’s clumsy challenge which left him side lined for months.
When Tsimikas returned he still managed to provide Liverpool’s best moment of the season – whipping in the corner that Virgil van Dijk nodded in to win the Carabao Cup.
Now 28 though, you could see sense in Liverpool moving Tsimikas on this summer, especially if they can get more than the £12m they paid for him in 2020. It would be sad to see Kostas go, but it does feel like time.