Liverpool remain in talks over appointing Arne Slot after Feyenoord turned down their opening offer for the head coach; Slot has now publicly revealed he wants to become the new Liverpool boss and is "confident" the clubs will find an agreement for him to move to Anfield
Friday 10 May 2024 10:11, UK
Feyenoord head coach Arne Slot has revealed he wants to become the new Liverpool boss and is "confident" an agreement will be reached for him to succeed Jurgen Klopp.
Liverpool remain in talks over appointing the Dutchman after Feyenoord turned down their opening offer for the 45-year-old.
Speaking before Feyenoord's 3-1 Eredivisie win at Go Ahead Eagles on Thursday, Slot told ESPN: "The clubs are negotiating. I am awaiting the outcome.
"It's no secret I want to go to Liverpool. Now I am waiting for the clubs to reach an agreement. I am confident that will happen."
Slot's comments come after Liverpool made an approach worth £7.75m for the ex-AZ Alkmaar boss but it is expected to cost Liverpool closer to £9m if Slot is to become Klopp's successor.
Following the victory over Go Ahead Eagles, Slot referenced the potential compensation fee and says while there will be "hard-bargaining", he believes Feyenoord will reach an agreement with Liverpool.
He said: "I have the impression that a good offer has already been made. And it seems that Feyenoord is already going to make the highest-paid Dutch transfer fee for a coach.
"And somewhere I still have a bit of the idea that I have performed so well in recent years, earned so much money, that Feyenoord is thinking along those lines. Although thinking along might not be the right word when you hear the amounts involved."
Asked whether they are wishing him well in the potential move, Slot replied: "I don't think "wish" is the right word when you know the amounts involved.
"Wishing is when you have a clause in your contract, and that's the maximum they're willing to pay. Then you can talk about wishing.
"Now it's just hard bargaining, which is everyone's right. But I absolutely believe they will reach an agreement."
Sky Sports News reported on Tuesday that Slot is at the forefront of Liverpool's search.
The Feyenoord boss ticks all their key criteria for the position and sources in Holland indicate the process could move quickly.
Slot, who secured the Dutch Cup last weekend and led Feyenoord to their first title in six years last season, appeals to Liverpool due to his aggressive, full-throttle style.
He has drilled his team to be adept at turning defensive actions into shooting opportunities and they top the Eredivisie for tackles won in the opposition's final third.
Feyenoord have the best defence in the league and the second-best offensive metrics.
Slot has proved capable of improving individuals as well as the collective, while operating on a smaller budget than his core competitors, and his penchant for a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formation fits Liverpool's squad.
Slot has previously been approached by Tottenham, Chelsea and Leeds. He signed a new contract last May to keep him at Feyenoord until 2026 but has referenced a desire to make the next step in his career.
Sporting manager Ruben Amorim was under consideration by Liverpool but sources say he is no longer in the frame, as it stands.
West Ham are interested in Amorim but Julen Lopetegui, the former Wolves, Real Madrid and Spain boss, and Paulo Fonseca, currently in charge of Lille, are considered the frontrunners.
Jamie Carragher says Liverpool's move for Slot demonstrates the lack of "top managers" currently available.
Speaking to Sky Sports, former Liverpool defender Carragher said: "From Feyenoord to Liverpool is a huge jump and I think it shows at this moment that there's probably a dearth of real top managers out there, when you look at who Liverpool are going for.
"Initially it was Xabi Alonso - it's only his first full season as a manager - then there was talk of Ruben Amorim from Sporting, who's only 39. Now Arne Slot is the favourite."
Carragher added the scenario potentially facing Slot at Anfield differs from the one Klopp inherited in 2014 after his time in charge of Borussia Dortmund, or the one Rafa Benitez walked into in 2004 after leaving Valencia.
"I don't think it's like Benitez coming in, or Klopp," he said. "Benitez coming in on the back of two LaLiga titles and a UEFA Cup, or Klopp winning a couple of league titles and getting to a Champions League final. Liverpool were actually in a different space then.
"That Liverpool team, certainly under Benitez that I was part of, we were the team trying to qualify for the top four. The same with Klopp when he came in.
"But Liverpool are in a different era now. They actually fancy themselves to challenge for the Premier League every season. Next season, in the Champions League they'd expect to get to the quarter-finals at least.
"I think it's a huge jump but he's obviously a great coach with a great track record so far. We'll see."
Ron Walker is joined by Sky Sports News' senior reporter, Melissa Reddy and Sky Sports football journalist Adam Bate to discuss Slot's potential move to Liverpool as Klopp's successor.
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Slot has emerged as the preferred candidate to replace the departing Klopp as the next Liverpool manager but who is the man that the club believe can lead them into this new era and what can they expect from this 45-year-old Dutch coach?
In conversation with those who coached Slot and those who have been coached by him, as well as colleagues on his staff, we examine the making of Liverpool's next manager, exploring his tactical ideas, his man-management and his handling of the media.
Read Adam Bate's in-depth feature on Slot here.
Slot took over from Dick Advocaat at Feyenoord for the start of the 2021/22 season with the club having finished fifth the previous campaign.
Just two years later, they were champions of the Eredivisie. He built a pressing team playing intense, attack-minded football while also being able to win.
Feyenoord are second behind PSV Eindhoven this season, nine points adrift with four games to play. In Europe, they finished third in their Champions League group before dropping into the Europa League, where they were knocked out by Roma on penalties in February.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Dutch football journalist Marcel van der Kraan said: "He is the prime candidate for Liverpool.
"It was only a matter of time before another big English club would come knocking on the door. He's not only been a successful manager, he's also been hugely impressive with his playing style of very attack-minded, Pep Guardiola-style football.
"I don't expect Feyenoord to stand in the way. They know he's a manager in demand but they will demand a big compensation fee. He has two years left on his contract.
"That was a record deal. Never before in Dutch football has a team paid a manager such huge wages.
"The players like him, the fans love him, the club love him - they won't want him to go. Feyenoord have every right to demand a big fee as there is no clause in his contract, which he renewed last year.
"He's been a successful coach and made Feyenoord champions playing crazy, sexy football. It is sexy what this man brings on a football pitch.
"There's nothing more to win for him here. The next step for him is to enter a club in a big league and no league is bigger for the Dutch than the Premier League.
"I will be surprised if Slot doesn't bite at this chance and become the manager of Liverpool next season."
