Arne Slot has said he wants to leave Feyenoord to take on the job of succeeding Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool manager and expects a resolution to negotiations between the two clubs in “the coming days.”
Liverpool opened talks with Feyenoord on Wednesday after identifying Slot, 45, as their No. 1 choice to replace Klopp, who will stand down from his position at the end of the season after almost nine years in charge at Anfield.
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Slot signed a three-year contract with Feyenoord last year after guiding the Rotterdam-based club to the Eredivisie title. The former AZ Alkmaar coach rejected offers from Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur to commit his future to Feyenoord.
But speaking to ESPN Netherlands ahead of Thursday’s Eredivisie game against Go Ahead Eagles, Slot said he wants to take the opportunity to move to the Premier League with Liverpool.
“The only thing I can say about it is that the clubs are in negotiations,” Slot said. “And then you sit in the waiting room and wait for what will come out.
“It seems clear to me that I would like to go to Liverpool. Now I’m waiting to see whether the clubs reach an agreement. I’m very confident in that.”
Sources have told ESPN that Feyenoord are holding out for a compensation package of £9 million for Slot. But the coach says he is happy for the two teams to thrash out a deal and is confident an agreement can be reached quickly.
“The clubs have to do their job,” he said. “And then I’m waiting and as the ‘main character.’ I have to respect that. It will undoubtedly become clear in the coming days.”
Following Feyenoord’s 3-1 win on Thursday, Slot gave provided more details about the negotiations surrounding his potential move to Liverpool.
“I have the impression that a good offer has already been made and that Feyenoord can make, as it seems, the best-paid transfer for a coach in The Netherlands,” he said.
Slot, 45, emerged as the leading contender for the Liverpool job following Xabi Alonso’s decision to remain at Bayer Leverkusen and a cooling in the Premier League club’s interest in Sporting CP coach Ruben Amorim.
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk was asked about Slot taking over for Klopp following his team’s 2-0 loss to Everton on Wednesday, and the Netherlands international said he thought his countryman’s style and philosophy would be a fit.
“I find it difficult to answer it now, of course,” van Dijk told Viaplay. “But I think Arne Slot might be one of the better Dutch coaches at this moment.
“I think [with] the way he plays and the philosophy he has that he could be a Liverpool coach. Only in my opinion, what I also read and hear, of course, is that it is far from finalised.
“We will see. Next year we will focus on that.”
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“I have the impression that a good offer has already been made and that Feyenoord can make, as it seems, the best-paid transfer for a coach in The Netherlands.”