Feyenoord defender Lutsharel Geertruida attended Liverpool’s match at West Ham on Saturday – less than 24 hours after the Reds agreed a compensation package for Arne Slot.
Slot, 45, has built up an impressive body of work at Feyenoord over the past three years and emerged as a contender to succeed Jurgen Klopp last week. And after publicly declaring his interest in the upcoming Anfield vacancy, Slot is now expected to be confirmed as Liverpool’s next head coach imminently.
While Slot is unlikely to physically be in place at Liverpool for some time, Geertruida, one of the Dutchman’s key players at Feyenoord, shared a picture from the London Stadium on his Snapchat story on an afternoon where the Reds’ title hopes disintegrated.
The 23-year-old defender has established himself as a key player under Slot and is Feyenoord’s current vice-captain. And while it remains to be seen if Slot has designs on bringing Geertruida – or any other players – with him to Liverpool, a former Anfield favourite tipped the versatile defender for a big move last year.
Dirk Kuyt has links to both Liverpool and Feyenoord and touted both Geertruida and Orkun Kokcu for moves to a top European team. Kokcu has since signed for Benfica but Geertruida is still on the books with the Eredivisie outfit.
“I am a Feyenoord man and they are doing very well at the moment,” Kuyt told The ECHO last year. “They have a very good manager in Arne Slot and some of the younger guys like Orkun Kokcu and Lutsharel Geertruida are knocking on the door and playing very well.
“It won’t take long for the interest of top European teams to be there for them. I hope Liverpool is interested in Feyenoord players, and I am an example it can work.
Arne Slot
Geertruida is one of Arne Slot’s key players at Feyenoord ( Image: Getty Images)
“When I was working as under-19s coach, Kokcu and Geertruida were in my team at the time. At Ajax you now have the likes of Jurrien Timber and Kenneth Taylor, who we were playing against. You know who the talented players are and you can see they are going to have big futures. Gakpo was a great talent and everyone knew from watching him at youth level that he would one day play for a club like Liverpool.”
Slot was given the blessing of his team to depart for Anfield following their win over Go Ahead Eagles on Thursday night. Captain Gernot Trauner told ESPN: “As a whole team we appreciate what he has done for us, how he has developed the team.
“For the time being it is not done yet, so of course we hope he stays here! But we also know that there will come a time for him to take the next step. If that next step is Liverpool, no one will blame him [for leaving]. If it happens, I will be very happy for him.”
