Arne Slot faces a challenge in trying to ensure that the start of his reign at Liverpool begins smoothly after Jurgen Klopp stepped down.
Slot will take over from Klopp on June 1 after Liverpool agreed to pay Feyenoord £9.4million in compensation for him. The Dutchman has big shoes to fill on Merseyside, with Klopp having occupied the role for eight and a half years and endeared himself to the club’s supporters.
Klopp won every trophy available to him during his spell in charge and Liverpool are set for a major change ahead of the 2024/25 campaign. Club captain Virgil van Dijk and vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold have been enjoying some downtime since the end of the season but were quizzed on their new boss while watching the Monaco Grand Prix over the weekend.
Asked by Sky Sports on Sunday if he thought it would be a pain-free transition, Van Dijk replied: “I hope so. Obviously I have full trust in the club and all the decisions going forward. It’s exciting as well. Change is always a bit in the unknown, but I have got full confidence and am looking forward to the new season already.”
He added when asked whether Liverpool could build on this season: “100 per cent, but success is not guaranteed. That’s pretty obvious. We are going to work our socks off in order to make it happen and we have a good coach coming in, a good backroom staff. We are a very good team. Let’s see what happens.”
Alexander-Arnold was spotted a day earlier and gave a very similar response. When he was asked if he was expecting a smooth transition under Slot, he said: “I hope so. I have trust in the club and who we’ve appointed. As a player, that’s all you can ask for, to have trust in what the higher-ups have brought in. I’m sure it will be a smooth transition.”
Van Dijk gave a more elaborate answer last week when addressing Slot and what lies ahead for Liverpool. “I am very curious and have a lot of questions all the time,” he said. “We will see. The Premier League and Liverpool is obviously a different ball game but we are here for him, I’ll be here for him whatever he needs. It is all about sticking together and give him the chance of showing what he is capable of with the other guys who will come in.
“He probably knows already but everyone knows our expectations are always huge and it is about managing that in the right way and getting the maximum out of all of our players. It starts with having a good break and then we are ready to go again.”
