Arne Slot is expected to take over from Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool but nothing has yet been formally announced
(Image credit: Alamy)
Former Liverpool goalkeeper Sander Westerveld believes difficulty securing an assistant coach for his good friend Arne Slot may lay behind the Reds’ lack of announcement over an appointment.
Westerveld was Liverpool number one under Gerard Houllier from 1999-2001 , helping the side win a League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup treble in his final full season for the club before Jerzy Dudek’s arrival forced him to move to Real Sociedad to get regular football.
The Dutchman regularly hits the golf course with Slot, who he played with at Sparta Rotterdam in 2007/08, and says he thinks his countryman’s expected move to Anfield ‘makes perfect sense’ for all concerned.
Sander Westerveld: Arne Slot to Liverpool 'makes perfect sense'
Ex-Liverpool custodian Westerveld has backed slot to succeed at Anfield (Image credit: Alamy)
Slot is widely expected to succeed Jurgen Klopp this summer, all but confirming as much at what could be his final press conference as Feyenoord manager on Sunday.
But an announcement is yet to be made confirming the move, which Westerveld believes may be down to his current assistant Sipke Hulshoff's summer international commitments.
Westerveld told BBC Sport: “For some reason they still haven't announced it. They are still struggling with the assistant coach. Sipke is the assistant to [Netherlands coach] Ronald Koeman, so he has to go to the Euros, so I think that is a little debate – but this is the week to announce it.
“[Slot] had a big farewell yesterday in the stadium so he's already said goodbye to the fans, so I think it is all sorted.”
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The former Reds stopper added: “I am really excited. I know him, of course, better than any [other] coach - it is a perfect fit.
“I saw all the other names in the frame, like Xabi Alonso, and I never put Slot in there but once he was there I was like 'this makes perfect [sense]', so I am really looking forward to it.
“If you look at the way he is with the press, the way he is with the fans, with the people, with the players, his playing style - attractive football, dominating, high pressure.
“He said before that he likes the Guardiola and Klopp styles of football. That's who he got inspired by and that's how he plays football with Feyenoord as well.
“He took Feyenoord when they sold their best players to Ajax. The best players left and they didn't have any money to spend so he took the team and he told everybody ‘this is OK, I have got the team, I think I can make them better’ – and he did. A year later they were champions so he takes all the full potential out of the players.
“That's why I really like the idea now and the project that is lying in front of him at Liverpool because it is not like he is taking over Manchester United when Ferguson left. OK, this is a base, this is 'Klopp 2.0' as they call it. Everything is there, all the young players are there.
“I am not sure that we need a lot of players. If he comes in and takes the full potential out of this squad I think we can play for the title again.”
Steven Chicken has been working as a football writer since 2009, taking in stints with Football365 and the Huddersfield Examiner. Steven still covers Huddersfield Town home and away for his own publication, WeAreTerriers.com. Steven is a two-time nominee for Regional Journalist of the Year at the prestigious British Sports Journalism Awards, making the shortlist in 2020 and 2023.
