Arne Slot is back in football, having outlined his plans following his Liverpool sacking
Arne Slot
Arne Slot is back in work(Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
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Arne Slot has secured his first job since being sacked as Liverpool boss. The Dutchman was axed at the end of last season following a deeply disappointing title defence, which saw the Reds only just secure Champions League football.
He was subsequently linked with the Netherlands national team job before insisting his immediate future lies in club football. While he waits for his next job in the game, Slot has been appointed to UEFA's Technical Observer Group, joining a host of household names, including some with Liverpool connections.
UEFA says the group will monitor the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League with "stats and video assistance, enabling them to deliver detailed reports on the latest developments in coaching, which are shared among the footballing community to give a dynamic account of the state of the game."
On Slot's addition to the group, European football's governing body added: "Slot made his name at Feyenoord, reaching the UEFA Conference League final in 2022 and winning an Eredivisie title and Dutch Cup in the following two campaigns.
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"He joined Liverpool in 2024 and immediately guided the club to their second Premier League trophy in five years before departing Anfield this summer."
Other members of the group include ex-Liverpool managers Rafa Benitez and Roy Hodgson, as well as former Reds goalkeeper David James. Ex-England boss manager Gareth Southgate and former Everton chief Sean Dyche are also involved.
Rafa Benitez has come in for stinging criticism from one of his former players
Rafa Benitez is part of the UEFA panel(Image: Nick Potts/PA Wire)
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Slot has made it clear he wants to get back into club management. As he distanced himself from speculation linking him with the Netherlands job, he told Voetbal International: "That speculation is incorrect. We simply never got to that stage of the talks.
"At this stage of my career, I prefer to see myself on the training field with my players every day, something that is simply not possible in the same way with a national team.
LIVERPOOL, UNITED KINGDOM - JULY 01: Roy Hodgson is unveiled as the new Liverpool FC manager at Anfield on July 01, 2010 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Clint Hughes/Getty Images)
Roy Hodgson brings his decades of experience to the group(Image: Getty Images)
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"I have a lot of respect for the national team and for the KNVB [Dutch Football Association] and can only be positive about the professional way in which the talks went that week. For now, I believe that club football still has a lot to offer me."
The Dutch job subsequently went to Spanish football legend Xavi, who signed a four-year contract up to the end of the 2030 World Cup.