Saturday morning brought the breaking news that Liverpool Football Club have decided to part ways with Arne Slot with immediate effect following a difficult second season in charge.
Following a spectacular debut season where Slot oversaw the Reds journey to winning their 20th league title with relative ease, his second campaign in charge was a struggle from the very beginning.
Tragedy in the summer with the unexpected passing of Diogo Jota just before preseason was the precursor to what would be a difficult 10 months for everyone at the club.
Liverpool make their decision known
In a statement, the club thanked Slot for his contributions but also laid out their reasoning for taking this route as well.
"That this was a difficult decision for us to make as a club goes without saying. The contribution Arne has made to Liverpool FC in the time that he has been with us has been significant, meaningful and - most importantly of all to supporters and ourselves - successful".
The Liverpool statement continued; "Nevertheless, the conclusion we have come to is built on a belief that that the team's trajectory is best addressed through a change of direction. That does not diminish the work Arne has done here, or the respect we have for him. Nor is it a reflection of his talents. Rather, it is indicative of the need for a different approach."
This is typically not something that the club does very often, as they prefer to give their managers/head coaches longer runways to establish their own vision at the club.
Following a summer where they spent over £400 million, the expectations were extremely high.
However, a fifth place finish in the league on a mere 60 points, 19 defeats in all competitions, and a dressing room that was seemingly never fully with him this season all proved to be too much to ignore.
Reds have their Arne Slot replacement
Per reports led by Fabrizio Romano, Liverpool already have the next man lined up, and that is going to be former Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola.
Iraola will be the next boss for the Reds as Romano stated that the club wants him and only him and the process will be smooth and quick to bring him into the club.
The Spaniard has shown his mettle in England already having led Bournemouth to European football while deploying an attractive style of play on the pitch. This aggressive and confident style should suit the talent already at Anfield, and further talents to come in the door.
In his three seasons in charge of the Cherries, he oversaw yearly growth at the club with Premier League finishes of 12th, then 9th and now this year, 6th place just behind Liverpool.
The sixth place finish this season was the highest final league position in club history.
He will now be tasked with turning things around almost immediately at Anfield, so his work is only just beginning.
Add us as a preferred source on Google