Arne Slot emerges as leading contender for Liverpool job

Liverpool are interested in appointing Feyenoord's Arne Slot as their new manager, 90min understands.

Slot is now one of the leading candidates to succeed Jurgen Klopp, who will leave Anfield at the end of the 2023/24 season.

The Dutchman led Feyenoord to the inaugural UEFA Europa Conference League final in his debut 2021/22 season and then won the Eredivisie title last year. He also won this season's KNVB Cup on Sunday with a 1-0 victory over NEC Nijmegen.

Slot's eye-catching brand of brave and attacking football is of appeal to Liverpool, and it was also why Tottenham Hotspur tried to sign him prior to appointing Ange Postecoglou. He is in demand again with Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Milan also interested.

Bayern are understood to be the most serious and aggressive of the other suitors. Barcelona and Milan will likely struggle to meet Feyenoord's compensation demands which, with backroom staff included, are expected to be close to be over £10m. Liverpool are still conducting a thorough process and as a result Slot is not the only candidate.

The Reds had been talking to Sporting CP's Ruben Amorim but, as 90min revealed earlier this month, the 39-year-old was never established as the top target for the position and those negotiations are not advancing as it stands.

Despite reports to the contrary, 90min understands Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Gary O'Neil is not one of the names on their shortlist. Similarly, Lille manager Paulo Fonseca is not currently under serious consideration by those in charge at Anfield.

FSG's CEO of Football Michael Edwards and Liverpool's incoming sporting director Richard Hughes are prepared to make a 'brave and bold appointment'.

With Liverpool not advancing talks with Amorim, the Sporting boss was invited to London on Monday for a conversation with West Ham United, who could opt to part ways with current manager David Moyes at the end of the season.

90min understands West Ham's approach to Amorim was always seen as a long shot. Instead, Julen Lopetegui is viewed as a feasible target and he would be available for free as he has not worked since being dismissed by Wolves in August 2023. Lopetegui hasn't been offered a three-year contract, though, despite some reports suggesting otherwise.

Fonseca is also under consideration by West Ham, who are open to giving the Lille boss a fresh chance to impress after a failed 2018 interview. No contact has been made yet with Fonseca, who is focused on Lille, but he is respected by West Ham and has been discussed internally along with ex-Brighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea boss Graham Potter.

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