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Former Liverpool goalkeeper Sander Westerveld believes his ex-teammate Arne Slot is the ideal candidate to succeed Jurgen Klopp as manager of the Reds.

With Klopp’s departure from the club confirmed for the summer, Feyenoord manager Slot has emerged as a frontrunner to take over at Anfield.

Negotiations between Liverpool and the Dutch club began on Wednesday as the Reds intensify their search for Klopp’s successor.

Westerveld, who achieved the treble with Liverpool in 2001, played alongside Slot at Sparta Rotterdam.

During the 2007/08 season, the duo shared the pitch in 21 matches and have maintained a close friendship since, regularly enjoying rounds of golf together.

Having conversed with Slot since Liverpool’s interest in him became public, Westerveld refrained from divulging Slot’s future plans.

However, the 45-year-old, who always held the belief that his compatriot would excel as a manager, is convinced that Slot would be an excellent fit for the Reds.

“When I played with Arne at Sparta, you could see that he would become a coach,” Westerveld told The Times.

“He was a leader, a No10 midfielder and someone who would change tactics by himself.

“I spoke to him this morning and he just said it is not a secret that Liverpool wants him but that he could not say anything.

I hope it will happen.

“The job he has done at Feyenoord makes him the perfect fit for Liverpool… When he signed for Feyenoord they sold the best player, Steven Berghuis, to Ajax and they didn’t have lots of money to spend.

“Everyone said it would be difficult, but Arne said: “No, no, I will make this happen.” A year later he became the champion of Holland with this team and that is why I think there are similarities with Liverpool.

“Liverpool have a lot of potential in the squad, and we don’t have the money that Manchester City have to spend, so I think he will get all the potential out of the players.

“He plays in the same style as Jurgen Klopp: sexy football, forward pressing and the percentage of ball recoveries in the opposition half is the highest in Holland.

When he loses the ball, he wants the ball back in three seconds.

“His personality is perfect for Liverpool.

He is a good fit because he is not only the manager of a team, he can manage a club and the fans.

“He is an intelligent guy, he is a good analyst and when you see his press conferences, he speaks good English and is very respectful.

“You will not see Arne being like Erik ten Hag was in his recent press conference?

He is a respectful guy like Pep Guardiola and he is an ambassador for the club.

“You need to be a special coach to coach a special club and I think Arne is that.”

Read more: David Ornstein answers question on the future of Darwin Núñez

Feyenoord main target for potential Arne Slot replacement revealed

Arne Slot replies to question on Liverpool interest – “I can’t deny that”

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