Exactly one year after José Mourinho scolded Arne Slot for an open camera, the Dutchman is now being linked to the soon-to-be vacant job as Liverpool manager when Jürgen Klopp steps down.
On Thursday evening, Slot himself states that Feyenoord and Liverpool are in negotiations and that he is waiting for them to reach an agreement.
– I want to become the new Liverpool manager, my decision is clear, he says to ESPN.
The video of Mourinho and Slot, who at the time coached AS Roma and Feyenoord respectively, is now being shared again on social media.
Offended Mourinho
The clip shows the two coaches in the players’ tunnel at the Stadio Olimpico after Roma emerged victorious from the meeting with the Dutch in the quarter-finals of the Europa League last year.
Ahead of the match, Slot had stated that he respected Roma’s style of play and how they get results through their way of playing, but that he would prefer to see Manchester City and Napoli.
That made Mourinho turn on all the plugs, and when the victory was in the box, he followed Slot ii into the players’ tunnel and shouted:
– You look at Napoli and you look at Manchester City. Maybe you should look at us, Mourinho scolded the Dutchman and asked him to show respect.
A surprisingly calm Slot partially agreed with Mourinho in an interview a few minutes later.
– Mourinho told me that I should not only watch Napoli and Manchester City, but that it would also help to see Roma play. Well, maybe he’s right, because they deserve praise for the attitude they brought tonight,” Slot told Dutch ESPN.
– A manager on the top shelf
Football expert and commentator Paul Thomas Clay has followed Dutch football for several years.
He believes Liverpool will secure an excellent replacement for Jürgen Klopp if the club goes for Slot.
– Liverpool should be able to choose from the top shelf, and this is certainly one I believe to be the case, even though he has so far only trained in the Netherlands, he has produced results that far exceed expectations, says Clay to Nettavisen.
Slot has been successful with Feyenoord after he took over as coach of the team in 2021 and led the club to the league title in the Netherlands last year.
– He does that against two teams (Ajax and PSV) that have several times the budget of Feyenoord. He is good at getting the best out of his players, says Clay.
– Better than ten Hag
Clay describes Slot as a skilled tactician.
– He is a good organizer and plays quite intense, powerful football, where it is fast in the longitudinal direction and not much unnecessary in cross and cross.
– I think everyone who ends up as a coach at Liverpool wants to have the tactics in order, but he has some qualities alongside that. He likes to work on the field and likes to work with individual players.
He draws parallels with another Dutch manager in the Premier League, Manchester United’s Erik ten Hag. The two can easily be compared in the British media, but Clay is aware that there are big differences.
– Where ten Hag might answer briefly or be misunderstood because he can seem a bit grumpy and cross, Arne Slot is much better there. He appears socially intelligent, has a good mood, and answers questions properly, without using standard phrases.
– Can go to Liverpool quickly
This week, several British and international media are reporting that Liverpool is negotiating with Feyenoord to be allowed to speak with the coach.
The 45-year-old is said to be very interested in joining the Merseyside club and things can now happen quickly.
According to Sky Sports, it will cost Liverpool around nine million pounds to buy Slot out of his current contract.
Sky Bet has reduced the odds on Slot as the next Liverpool manager to 1.22 – over 80 percent probability.
Tags: Jose Mourinho Arne Slot Mourinho scolded Liverpools manager
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