Liverpool's hierarchy has known for longer than almost anyone else that Jürgen Klopp was going to leave this summer.

Liverpool's owner, FSG, has sought to reshape things in the background, giving the club the best chance of being able to move forward without too much of a hitch.

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There will be a transition period of some length, but the feeling is that the playing squad — ultimately the biggest determinant in how successful a club is — is set up nicely to progress, despite the disappointing last few weeks.

As expected given the restructure behind the scenes at Liverpool, with Michael Edwards back working with FSG as CEO of football and Richard Hughes installed as the Reds' new sporting director, Slot's title, The Times has confirmed, will be 'head coach' rather than 'manager'.

Until 2016, Liverpool had never had a sporting director before, but that position — like the head coach — is seen as the optimal model in which to work.

Ultimately, as well as it being a streamlined way to operate where no one person is responsible for too much, it is also a safeguard against the kind of decline that Manchester United saw post-Alex Ferguson.

The idea — the theory, at least — is that if what is behind the scenes stays consistent, the identity of the head coach, which is always likely to change more often, matters less.

While the job title for Slot is not unusual, it is a Liverpool first — and the Reds will hope that the theory of a head coach being easier to replace within the wider ecosystem is not one that has to be tested any time soon.


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