Liverpool is set to appoint Arne Slot as head coach for the 2026-27 season, despite ongoing concerns about the team's tactical identity. The club is also looking to Feyenoord for potential assistant manager candidates.
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ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS - JANUARY 18: Warming up of Assistant coach Etienne Reijnen of Feyenoord during the Dutch Vriendenloterij Eredivisie match between Feyenoord and Sparta Rotterdam at Stadion Feijenoord on January 18, 2026 in Rotterdam, Netherlands. (Photo by Hans van der Valk/BSR Agency/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Liverpool head into May still without a clear tactical identity and with pressing, passing, chance creation and finishing, and fitness all having been trending in the wrong direction since at least January of last year. Despite that, it appears increasingly certain that Liverpool will head into the 2026-27 season with Arne Slot in charge.
With Champions League qualification appearing at least reasonably secure with four games left to play in the season, all signs point to Slot being given a chance to prove that 2025-26 went wrong for reasons outside of his control and that he—along with directors Michael Edwards and Richard Hughes—deserve a chance to prove they can win with a team they build and not just one left to them by Jürgen Klopp.
There are clearly doubts, though. At least amongst the fans and pundits. And that risks a situation where any kind of stumble next season could quickly lead to an ugly situation as when Liverpool’s owners chose to stick with Brendan Rodgers despite everything on the pitch seemingly trending in the wrong direction back in 2015.
It also seems inevitable, though, that there will be some changes. Tweaks, if only around the edges of the playing and coaching staff. The biggest of these seems likely to be assistant manager, where after arriving last summer to replace the departing John Heitinga, Giovanni van Bronckhorst now appears set to depart. A sporting director job at Feyenoord is said to be on offer for him.
Arne Slot is the current head coach of Feyenoord, and Liverpool is considering him to lead the team into the 2026-27 season due to recent struggles with tactical identity.
Liverpool has struggled with pressing, passing, chance creation, and fitness, prompting the need for a new tactical direction under Slot's leadership.
Fans and pundits have expressed concerns that a poor start next season under Slot could mirror the situation in 2015 when the club retained Brendan Rodgers despite declining performance.
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Meanwhile, according to The Echo it could well be a Feyenoord man heading in the other direction as his replacement, with Arne Slot said to be eager to reunite with Etienne Reijnen. Reijnen is the Dutch club’s current assistant manager and worked under Slot during his time there. He was linked with a move to Liverpool in 2024.
At the time, though, work permit complications caused Liverpool to look at alternatives while Reijnen stayed in Holland and saw his role increased. In recent weeks, a potential return to Liverpool for Heitinga this summer has also been floated as a possibility.