Arne Slot is a name Premier League fans need to start getting to know as he prepares to take over as Liverpool boss next season.
The Dutchman has transformed Feyenoord into a sublime team since being appointed manager in 2021 and is set to replace Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool this summer.
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The Reds had made the Dutchman their main target to replace Klopp, who will leave at the end of the season.
talkSPORT understands the Reds have now agreed a deal with Feyenoord for Slot to arrive at Anfield, with members of his backroom squad.
The 45-year-old even got early approval from Klopp to sit in the hot seat at Anfield next year.
TOTTENHAM REJECTION
However, on a different timeline, he would already be in England as Tottenham boss.
Indeed, before Spurs selected Ange Postecoglou in 2023, they tried to bring Slot to north London.
Interestingly, the Dutchman was relatively low on the list of targets after Vincent Kompany, Roberto De Zerbi and Julian Nagelsmann were all ruled out.
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But although the Spurs were close to accepting compensation, Slot rejected the opportunity to take the Spurs job.
And speaking about why he turned down Tottenham, the Feyenoord boss revealed the key factor was the Champions League or lack thereof.
Speaking after the deal collapsed, he said: “The deciding factor was playing the Champions League.
“The fantastic work with the staff and the players, the fact that I have a good time in private and that I can capitalize on the last two seasons.
“I didn’t know what was going to happen [with Tottenham]. I weighed everything, including whether the people who work with me would want to come with me.
“You can think about it, but I don’t think it’s a chic thing to say!” But my intention is to stay because it already creates an expectation.
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However, with Liverpool now almost certain to play among Europe’s elite next season, the Champions League was no problem for Slot.
ANOTHER PEP
Looking at his record, you can understand why Liverpool are so impressed with the Dutchman.
Slot enjoyed a relatively quiet playing career, spending the majority of his time at FC Zwolle before retiring in 2013.
He immediately became youth coach at Zwolle before joining SC Cambuur as assistant coach, where he remained until arriving at AZ Alkmaar.
Slot was the club’s assistant for two years, but became first-team boss in the summer of 2019.
His Alkmaar side were prolific, scoring 118 goals in 58 matches, while helping the club qualify for the Europa League.
He also boasted the highest win rate in the club’s history, but was surprisingly sacked in 2020 due to Alkmaar’s belief that he had lost focus on his job amid his links with Feyenoord.
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Of course, he ended up at Feyenoord less than a year later, and the rest is history.
They won the Eredivisie last season and the KNVB Cup this year to give Slot their first pieces of silverware.
GAMEPLAY STYLE
The 45-year-old has been compared to Pep Guardiola by Dutch football journalist Marcel van der Kraan, who said: “He is a very good manager and sometimes it can come thick and fast.
“I have been with Feyenoord for 40 years. Since the days of Johan Cruyff at Ajax in the 1980s, there has not been such an offensive coach in the Dutch league. Cruyff has 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 have seen over the last two years. Feyenoord fans can’t believe what they have seen during this whole period.
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Of course, the key element for Liverpool fans is the style of play, and Slot loves to entertain.
Speaking to UEFA about his brand of football, he said: “We are an attacking-minded team who like to have a lot of the ball and we play with a lot of intensity.
“When we don’t have the ball, we want to get it back as quickly as possible by being aggressive and pressing to regain possession. I think we are a tough team to beat.
In many ways, this is exactly how Klopp and Guardiola play, so the transition should be simple for Liverpool fans and players.
SIMEONE RAGITANT
Slot and Atletico boss Diego Simeone found himself in a scrappy match – after a 2021 friendly.
It was a moment lost in translation when Simeone thought Slot was trying to calm him down after Feyenoord’s 2-1 win.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKnnfNHFk0k
“At that moment, at the end of the match, I turned to Simeone to tell him how passionate he was, even in a friendly,” he said ahead of the League clash Champions in 2023.
“Then he misinterpreted the smile I had at that moment and pushed me. It says a lot about him, how easily he gets angry and frustrated. No matter who he’s in front of, he’s like that, I don’t do it.” I don’t think he has anything against me.
REMEMBER
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Off the field, he’s a big rap fan – at least his daughter is, since she took her to see Dutch rapper Jonna Fraser in Amsterdam.
He’ll be in good hands with team members such as John Aldridge, who performed the 1988 hit “Anfield Rap”, still going strong.
The Reds had other options for their new manager, but the more you learn about Slot, it seems like a perfect solution.
To you, Aldo…
