Liverpool have officially confirmed the arrival of Arne Slot as their new head coach.
It had been an open secret for weeks on end that Slot would be the man to fill the vacant job at Liverpool this summer.
But after the Reds waved goodbye to Jurgen Klopp on Sunday, they have now felt that the time is right to make it all official.
Slot will take over on a three-year contract at Anfield, and joins as the first Liverpool manager – or indeed head coach – from the Netherlands.
The 45-year-old emerged on top of a long search for Klopp’s successor. And on the day of his appointment, some interesting details about some other, leading contenders has emerged.
Liverpool considered hiring Ernesto Valverde
There were plenty of names linked with taking over from Klopp. The likes of Ruben Amorim and Xabi Alonso appeared to be two with the strongest claims.
Liverpool’s flirtation with both is detailed in a piece from The Athletic, who have also shed light on some rather bizarre considerations from the Reds.
They claim that aside from Amorim and Alonso, Liverpool did strongly think about hiring two other managers. Their identities will perhaps surprise a few.
The first is former Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde. Reds supporters will know the 60-year-old as the man in charge during Anfield’s most famous night – the 4-0 win over the Catalans in 2019.
The current Athletic Bilbao manager is said to have been thought of as a ‘leading contender’ by Liverpool.
So too was Italy boss Luciano Spalletti. Despite being 65, Spalletti is claimed to have been ‘seriously considered’ by FSG.
Who is Ernesto Valverde
We can’t deny it, this has really surprised us. Never in a million years would we have pegged Valverde down as a potential Klopp successor.
Nevertheless, perhaps that’s more fool us. Now in his third spell with Athletic, Valverde is an especially well-travelled coach who ended the Basque team’s 40-year wait for a trophy last month, winning the Copa del Rey.
Prior to that Valverde won two La Liga’s with Barca and three Greek league titles with Olympiacos. He would have been a fascinating choice.
So too would Spalletti. Despite being a little older than the other candidates, the Italian romped to the Serie A title with Napoli last season. He’s brilliant, slightly eccentric and incredibly personable. In hindsight, he could have fit like a glove.
With Liverpool going down a much younger route with Slot, they’ve set their stall out on this one. But, we can’t lie, both of these would have been so very interesting to see.