Reds open talks with Feyenoord manager Slot
Liverpool have opened talks with Feyenoord over appointing Arne Slot with the 45-year-old keen to succeed Jürgen Klopp at Anfield.
Slot has emerged as the frontrunner for the Liverpool job with his track record of improving young talent, success on a relatively modest budget, European experience and a style of play that is not a dramatic departure from Klopp’s, all appealing to Anfield’s recruitment team.
Liverpool have now made an official approach for their favoured candidate, who is of interest to Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Milan, and Slot is open to a move to the Premier League club. It will take a compensation fee in the region of €10m (£8.5m) to release him from the final two years of his Feyenoord contract. Slot led the Rotterdam club to victory in the KNVB Cup on Sunday and won the Eredivisie title last season. He also reached the 2022 Europa Conference League final.
Liverpool’s search for Klopp’s successor is being driven by Michael Edwards, the new chief executive officer of football, and the incoming sporting director, Richard Hughes.
Xabi Alonso was the initial frontrunner but, after committing his future to Bayer Leverkusen, Liverpool have considered alternatives, including Sporting’s Rúben Amorim and Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi. However Slot is the first candidate they have made an official move for, a sign of Edwards’ and Hughes’ confidence in hiring a coach who was wanted by Tottenham last season.