Having said goodbye to his adorning Anfield crowd with a solid home win over Wolves on the final day of the season, Jurgen Klopp is no longer the man in charge of Liverpool Football Club – a rather unusual feeling for all associated with the club.
In one of the worst kept secrets in world football, Klopp’s replacement at Anfield has now been officially confirmed as former Feyenoord manager Arne Slot, who looks ready to take on the mantle in charge of one of the biggest sides on the planet.
Whilst his appointment was hardly a surprise for most sports bookmakers and online casinos, having slot officially confirmed as Liverpool’s new manager on the first day of the summer, gives both Slot and the club plenty of time to plan for life without Jurgen Klopp.
Ultimately, the first challenge for Slot will be to familiarise himself with both the playing staff at Liverpool and the nuances that come with being in charge of arguably the best supported club in world football.
Many managers have found the hotseat at Anfield simply too hot to handle, with the weight of expectation transcending through the manager and onto the playing staff and following Jurgen Klopp will be a huge ask for any manager.
Arne Slot however has been hand-picked by the Liverpool hierarchy to build upon the incredible work done by Jurgen Klopp over the best part of a decade and it promises to be a fascinating period in the club’s history, regardless of how the Dutchman fares.
Fitting the Slot
As with Pep Guardiola at Manchester City and Mikel Arteta at Arsenal, the level of coaching at Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp has been stratospheric, with the German able to push the club back to former glories throughout the late 2010’s and early 2020’s.
Klopp propelled Liverpool to a Champions League triumph in 2019 and backed it up with a Premier League win in 2020, the first time Liverpool had managed to win England’s top division for 30 years.
With plenty of domestic cups bagged too, Klopp brought a brand of successful football to Liverpool not seen since the 1970’s and 80’s and Arne Slot knows he has a serious job on his hands to fill the void left by the German.
Blending a style of swashbuckling football at Feyenoord, with plenty of success whilst in charge of the Dutch giants, Arne Slot certainly has the perfect profile to fill the huge shoes left by Jurgen Klopp and his profile is befitting of the Liverpool manager’s job.
Bridging the gap
For all the plaudits rightfully coming the way of Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp this season, a Carabao Cup aside, ultimately Liverpool came up short when it mattered in the Premier League.
Into mid-March, it looked as if the reds were on course for an unprecedented quadruple, as they battled on in the Europa League and FA Cup, but it very quickly unravelled for Jurgen Klopp’s side.
Losing to Manchester United in the FA Cup, before being hammered by Atalanta over two legs in the Europa League put pay to any hopes of adding to their cup competition tally under Klopp before he left Anfield.
In addition, poor results against United, Crystal Palace, Everton and West Ham United in the Premier League saw Liverpool finish in 3rd place, flagging behind Arsenal and Manchester City and one of Arne Slot’s first tasks will be to see if he can overhaul that deficit next season.
Champions League charge
Another huge plus for Arne Slot in his first season at Liverpool will be the return of Champions League football to Anfield. The reds lost out in the final to Real Madrid in 2022, before being ousted by the Spaniards again in 2023 and failing to qualify in 2024.
Liverpool have bagged 6 Champions League titles and how Arne Slot would love to adhere himself to the Anfield faithful with a push for another European Cup and Liverpool folklore potentially waits for the Dutchman.
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