Arne Slot closes in on deal to appoint former Arsenal star as his Liverpool assistant

Arne Slot closes in on deal to appoint former Arsenal star as his Liverpool assistant

Liverpool are working hard to add new faces to their squad with Arne Slot also hopng to recruit a new coach following the departure Johnny Heitinga earlier this season

Arne Slot is set to add a new face to his backroom team (Image: Getty Images )

Liverpool are set to appoint Giovanni van Bronckhorst as a coach. Arne Slot is looking to add another Dutchman to his coaching team to replace Johnny Heitinga, who departed to take the top job at Ajax.

Van Bronckhorst has been out of work since he was sacked by Besiktas in November. The Dutch coach has previously managed Feyenoord - like Slot - as well as Rangers.

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But now he will step back into a role as an assistant to take over from Heitinga if a deal gets completed. He will work with Sipke Hulshoff and Aaron Briggs in Slot's revamped coaching team.

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Heitinga was a popular figure among the Liverpool players after just a year at the club for the former Everton defender.

But he could not turn down the chance to take charge of Ajax, where he has previously been interim boss. Van Bronckhorst had a distinguished career as a player having played with Rangers, Arsenal, Barcelona and Feyenoord at either end of his playing time.

Speaking out earlier this year, Van Bronckhorst shared his disgruntlement about how his spell at Ibrox ended. He said: "I'm frustrated because I had to leave because I am a fighter, I was a fighter as a player and also as a coach.

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"I think I have done everything in my power to manage the club. If you have to say goodbye to a club, and a club I mean players, the fans to leave, that is not a nice feeling to leave something you love.

"But you have to live with it, you have to deal with it and you have to move on because life goes on. I am now in a very positive place where I enjoy life, I enjoy my family and enjoy watching really good games. We all move on."

Van Bronckhorst added: "It's something you don't want as a coach. I wish I was still there coaching this team but I also know how it works in football and I am not deciding the future of the club. It is not ideal for a coach and I think also not ideal for a club."

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Giovanni van Bronckhorst has been out of work since being sacked by Rangers (Image: Getty Images )

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Following his time with Rangers, Van Bronckhorst was appointed by Turkish giants Besiktas but lasted just five months in Istanbul. He won exactly half of the 20 matches he oversaw - and has not returned to the dugout since.

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Away from the dugout, Liverpool are also hard at work adding to their playing staff. Jeremie Frimpong and Armin Pecsi have already been signed and the Reds are still chasing deals for Milos Kerkez and Florian Wirtz.

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