Liverpool Opens Formal Talks With Andoni Iraola After Sacking Arne Slot

Liverpool will hold formal talks with Andoni Iraola this week over becoming their new head coach after the club sacked Arne Slot on Saturday, just a year after the Dutchman guided them to the Premier League title.

“Liverpool will open formal talks with Andoni Iraola this week over becoming their new head coach”

BBC

The BBC said Liverpool hope to have a successor in place as soon as possible, with Iraola the leading contender after he delivered Bournemouth’s sixth-placed finish that qualified them for next season’s Europa League.

BBC

The Guardian reported Liverpool intend to move quickly in their search for a new head coach and hope to install Arne Slot’s successor before the World Cup begins on 11 June, with contact made with Iraola’s camp and formal talks expected over the coming days.

The Guardian also said Liverpool are likely to sound out Stuttgart’s Sebastian Hoeness and Pierre Sage of Lens, while noting that the 43-year-old Basque is out of contract and available now.

On Sunday, Virgil van Dijk paid tribute to Slot, writing on Instagram: “We’ll never forget winning the Premier League in our first season together. Thank you, Trainer, and best of luck to you and your family for the future.”

The BBC said the decision to sack Slot was made by Michael Edwards, Fenway Sports Group chief executive, and Richard Hughes, Liverpool's sporting director, who believe the club needs a more front-foot, aggressive and urgent style of football.

In a separate account, the Guardian said Slot was informed his Liverpool career was over approximately 90 minutes before the club announced their decision at 12.30pm on Saturday, and that the review into Liverpool’s troubled season was led by Hughes and Michael Edwards.

Football365

The BBC framed the appointment race as one where Liverpool have considered other candidates such as Stuttgart's Sebastian Hoeness and Lens' Pierre Sage, while the expectation is that Iraola will be appointed.

Among fan reactions quoted by the BBC, Mike wrote, “Very happy with the Iraola approach. His attitude and work-rate, and that of his teams, is a better fit for Liverpool and what we need to right the wrongs of this season.”

Other fans quoted by the BBC offered a contrasting view, with Alex warning, “Iraola would be a gamble. Do Liverpool have the squad for heavy metal football now?”

Liverpool’s search for a successor is being shaped by timing and compensation, with the Guardian saying Liverpool would have to pay compensation to extract Hoeness, Sage or another employed coach from their current clubs whereas Iraola is out of contract and available now.

“Incoming Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola looks committed to bringing in Yan Diomande as his first signing with the Bundesliga star now ‘leaning towards’ a move to Anfield”

Football365

The Guardian also reported that Liverpool’s schedule to conclude the process before the World Cup starts on 11 June is intended to give the new man ample time to prepare, and that the club plan to speak to preferred candidates at the earliest opportunity.

The BBC said Liverpool qualified for next season’s Champions League despite finishing the Premier League season with 60 points, their lowest tally since the 2015-16 campaign and 25 points behind champions Arsenal, and that the club spent £415m last summer on six players.

In the BBC’s account of the club’s approach, it said Liverpool have considered other candidates linked with the vacancy, including Crystal Palace, AC Milan and Bayer Leverkusen as places Iraola has been linked with.

The Guardian added that Liverpool’s sporting director Richard Hughes has a relationship with Iraola after appointing him at Bournemouth when Hughes was in a similar role there, and that Liverpool hope to have a successor in place as soon as possible.