Liverpool open talks with Feyenoord after identifying Arne Slot as the ideal candidate to succeed Jurgen Klopp... as Reds face £8.5m compensation fee to land the Dutchman

Liverpool have opened talks with Feyenoord after identifying head coach Arne Slot as the ideal candidate to replace Jurgen Klopp at the end of the season. 

Slot, who was considered by both Tottenham and Chelsea last summer, has found immense success since joining the Dutch side in 2021 and has become one of the most progressive coaches in European football.

He recently guided his side Feyenoord to victory in the KNVB Cup; the second trophy he has won in charge of the Rotterdam giants, having made them domestic champions 12 months ago. 

His accolades at the Dutch side have made him an ideal candidate to succeed Klopp at Anfield and the Reds have now stepped up their pursuit of the 45-year-old.

Feyenoord are said to be happy to sanction a departure but the Merseyside outfit would need €10million (£8.59m) to do so.

It should also be noted that Slot’s planned press conference to preview Feyenoord’s game against Go Ahead Eagles on Thursday night has been cancelled. No official reason was given. 

Slot is likely to bring his right-hand man Sipke Hulshoff to his next club, with Liverpool needing a mass rebuild in the coaching department after a number of high-profile members of Klopp’s trusted team set to follow him out of the exit door.

Klopp announced in late January he would leave the club after nearly nine years at the helm and he now has just five matches remaining on Merseyside, including Wednesday's trip across Stanley Park to Everton and Goodison Park. 

Initial reports suggested that the Reds were considering a move for Xabi Alonso, who has done such outstanding work with Bayer Leverkusen.

But Alonso wanted to stay in Germany and that led to Ruben Amorim assuming bookmakers favouritism. The Portuguese, who has £12million release clause in his contract, spoke recently about not being able to give Sporting Lisbon any guarantees on his future.

Liverpool had given him firm consideration, as they have done with Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi, but they are now prepared to move in a different direction from Amorim, who is a target for West Ham United, as Mail Sport reported on Monday.

Last summer, after holding exploratory talks over a move to Tottenham, Slot announced that he would be staying in the Netherlands - having won the Dutch Eredivisie title with Feyenoord last season. 

While he hasn't been able to repeat that feat during the 2023-24 campaign, Slot has pushed Feyenoord to second in the league standings, using his attacking and entertaining brand of football. 

He is an innovative manager who understands how modern-day footballers operate - meaning he can deliver a rousing team talk or dish out a telling off, should it be required. 

And his tactics are similar to those that Liverpool deploy under Klopp - with the 45-year-old instructing his players to deploy an intensive man-marking strategy and win the ball back early.