This is an updated version of an article first published on May 14, 2023.

In 2020-21, the season before Arne Slot became their manager, Feyenoord finished 29 points behind champions Ajax.

Slot’s side have only been beaten twice in the league — and not at all since December 3 — and won the Dutch Cup last weekend.

Now Liverpool have agreed a deal with Feyenoord for Slot to fill the vacancy left by Jurgen Klopp as manager this summer.

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But why is he attracting such interest — and what is his background?

Arne Slot was slow.

As a player, Slot was a perfectly decent midfielder, with the bulk of his appearances coming in the Dutch second tier.

He was living proof that one player cannot do his job unless a colleague is doing theirs.

He was always going to be a coach, moving from the playing squad to the coaching staff at PEC Zwolle immediately after his retirement.

“Some players you can see are going to be coaches,” says De Graaf.

He was one of those players who used his time on the pitch as an extended apprenticeship for when he moved to the touchline.

Slot hung up his boots in 2013 after playing for PEC Zwolle and immediately joined the club’s youth academy as a coach.

He then spent three years as a coach at Cambuur, who had just been promoted to the Eredivisie, after which he moved to AZ Alkmaar to be assistant to manager John van den Brom, still only 39 when he took that job.

“Arne is a fantastic person and a fantastic trainer who really let us play football in the style of Manchester City or Barcelona in the good times.”

“He’s as honest as possible, so the players really like him,” says De Graaf.

Nelson enjoyed life under Feyenoord (Pim Waslander/Soccrates/Getty Images)

Slot has not gained the backing of these players just by being straightforward, though.

In particular, the last one is always positive so the players leave their session feeling good about themselves.

Arguably, the player who most benefitted from Slot’s tenure at Feyenoord was Kokcu, who came through the ranks at Feyenoord.

Kokcu (centre) excelled under Arne Slot (ANP via Getty Images)

Previously regarded as a talented but slightly insubstantial No 10, Kokcu came back from Euro 2020 with Turkey to find things had changed.
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