Meet Arne Slot, the Feyenoord boss who is being tipped to replace Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool.
Back in January, the world of football was shaken to its core when Liverpool boss Klopp announced his decision to leave the club at the end of the 23/24 season.
The likes of Xabi Alonso, Ruben Amorim, Roberto De Zerbi and Thomas Tuchel have since been linked with a move to Anfield.
However, Alonso revealed last month that he will be staying at Bayer Leverkusen, whilst recent reports indicate that Amrorim moving to Liverpool is unlikely.
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Meanwhile, the odds on Slot replacing Klopp have been dropping by the day.
Who is Arne Slot?
During his playing days, the 45-year old played for the likes of FC Zwolle, NAC Breda, Sparta Rotterdam and PEC Zwolle.
After retiring in 2013, Slot became a youth team coach at PEC Zwolle before moving to SC Cambuur as an assistant coach.
Slot eventually became the head coach at AZ Alkmaar before COVID-19 hampered his first season in charge. In 2020, Slot was sacked after negotiating a deal to take over at Feyernoord.
Under Slot, Feyenoord finished third in the Eredivisie during his first season in charge, he also took them to the final of the Europa Conference League, in which the Rotterdam club lost to Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma.
Last season, he led the club to their first league title since 2017.
What has been said about him?
The former midfielder has been compared to Pep Guardiola, according to Dutch football journalist Marcel van der Kraan, who said: “He's a really good manager and sometimes it can come fast and quick. I've followed Feyenoord for 40 years. Not since the days of Johan Cruyff at Ajax in the 1980s has there been a coach so attack-minded in the Dutch league. Cruyff only had a few disciples who followed him and one of them was Pep Guardiola.
“I would say Slot is a Guardiola-style manager based on everything I've seen over the past couple of years. The fans of Feyenoord can't believe what they've seen over that time.”
As reported by Sky Sports, Slot is a fan of rap, having travelled from Rotterdam to Amsterdam to attend a gig by Dutch rapper Jonna Fraser back in 2023.
Slot's charisma has also been praised, the report stated: "Less is known about Slot the man. Slot the person.
"He's engaging, polite, very smiley, he's hot presence and charisma - and he's funny."
What has he said about his future?
Back in 2023, Slot revealed that his next club will not be in his home country of the Netherlands.
He said: "My next step will not be a club in Holland.
"If that is my next step, then I've failed completely. The normal next step will be to go abroad and I've always said the best league in the world is the Premier League."
Topics: Football, Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool, Feyenoord
Marcus Chan