Arne Slot’s Controversial Insight Could Benefit Everton

Arne Slot’s name is hardly sung on the Everton side of Merseyside, yet one of his more controversial observations might end up doing the Blues a favour.

In trying to explain a Liverpool problem, he may have perfectly described an Everton solution.

Slot’s warning that now sounds like a recommendation

Back in December 2025, ahead of facing Leeds United, Slot was asked about the adaptation of Alexander Isak and the dynamics of his Liverpool attack. His answer contained a line that irritated Liverpool supporters but now rings loudly at Finch Farm.

“It makes it harder for [Isak] compared to his time at Newcastle but I think it is also him adjusting to his teammates and his teammates adjusting to him,” Slot said. “But it is obvious and clear that we have not the profile of Jacob Murphy, for example, available at this moment at this time.”

Liverpool fans bristled. Why reference a Newcastle winger as the missing piece at Anfield? Why bring up Jacob Murphy at all?

On the other side of Stanley Park, those words suddenly read like a scouting report.

Everton, pushing to build a squad capable of reaching European football next season, have been linked with Murphy as they hunt for more threat and variety in attack. They still want Jack Grealish back at Hill Dickinson Stadium, but one signing will not fix an attack that has too often looked blunt and predictable.

Murphy, as Slot hinted, offers something different.

The profile Everton don’t have often enough

Slot’s point was simple: Murphy is a winger who thinks first about the striker. Supply before glory. Delivery before headlines.

That is precisely where Everton have been short.

Last season, the numbers were damning. They ranked 15th in the Premier League for shots on target per match. Fifteenth for big chances created. Fifteenth for touches in the opposition box, according to FotMob. Mid-table output from a team with ambitions of Europe.

Too many moves stalled on the flanks. Too many crosses delayed, or never delivered. Too many forwards feeding off scraps.

Murphy’s record at Newcastle tells a different story. In Eddie Howe’s squad last season, no one created more big chances than the 29-year-old. His tally of 10 led the way at St James’ Park and would have put him joint-second at Everton, level with Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and only two behind James Garner.

That is not a small upgrade. That is a change in how often the centre-forward actually sees the ball where it matters.

Why Newcastle’s creator fits Everton’s problem

Everton’s interest in Murphy comes at a time when Newcastle appear more open to letting him move on. For a club that has long struggled to turn territory into clear chances, his profile makes sense.

He runs wide, stretches the pitch, and looks early for the man in the middle. He does the unfashionable work that makes strikers look expensive and managers look clever.

This is exactly the type of player Slot said Liverpool lacked. The irony is hard to miss: a Liverpool manager, unpopular across Stanley Park, publicly identified a player profile his own club did not have – and in doing so, highlighted one that Everton badly need.

Everton do not just require star names; they need functional pieces that unlock the rest of the side. A winger who consistently supplies big chances is not glamorous on paper. On the pitch, he changes seasons.

Slot’s reputation among Liverpool fans took a hit when he name-checked Murphy. If Everton get their way, those same words might be remembered very differently in L3 – as the accidental endorsement that pushed the Blues towards exactly the kind of winger their attack has been crying out for.