Arne Slot may have an ideal route back into management barely a week after being sacked by Liverpool. A vacancy has emerged at his former club Feyenoord, following the dismissal of boss Robin van Persie.
Slot was handed his marching orders by Liverpool last month, after the Reds failed to win a trophy and finished fifth in the Premier League. The Dutch coach was unable to replicate his impressive title-winning debut season in England, despite the club's lavish spending, and has been replaced by Andoni Iraola.
While Slot's future had been speculated upon throughout the season, his exit arrived almost a week after the end of the English campaign. Van Persie's own dismissal may have come as a surprise, too, after he led Feyenoord to second place in the Eredivisie.
Feyenoord's decision
Feyenoord finished 19 points behind champions PSV Eindhoven, and the club opted to end the former Arsenal striker's 16-month tenure. Van Persie's exit was announced just two weeks after Devy Rigaux's appointment as technical director and Robert Eenhoorn as general manager.
A statement announcing the decision read: "Feyenoord will begin the 2026-2027 season with a new head coach. Robin van Persie was informed of this decision today during a meeting with the club’s management."
Technical Director Dévy Rigaux described the decision as difficult: "Robin van Persie has given everything for the club over the past 18 months. He deserves credit for guiding the team through a challenging season and ultimately securing second place. That ensured qualification for the UEFA Champions League, which is of great importance to the club."
"We conducted a thorough internal evaluation in which we looked at several factors, including the development of the team’s performances and the downward trend in points collected, both in Europe and in the Eredivisie. The conclusion was that it would be better to start the new season with a new head coach."
Feyenoord expects to announce Van Persie’s successor within the coming weeks.
Slot's previous success at Feyenoord
Slot succeeded Dick Advocaat to take charge of Feyenoord in 2021 and enjoyed a successful spell. The Dutch side finished as Conference League runners-up in 2021-22, before winning the Eredivisie in 2022-23 and the KNVB Cup in 2023-24.
Upon announcing his departure from the club in May 2024, Slot admitted it had not been an easy decision. "It’s certainly not an easy decision to close the door behind you at a club where you’ve had so many great moments and worked successfully with so many great people," he said in a statement on Feyenoord’s website. "But an opportunity to become a head coach in the Premier League, at one of the biggest clubs in the world, is hard to ignore as a sportsman."
Speaking last September, Feyenoord CEO Dennis te Kloese expressed some regret over Slot's exit. "It was just going well, so we thought it could continue under a new manager," he said. "But look at what Arne is doing at Liverpool; it’s unique. So, we also had to assess ourselves: are the things we’re doing really that well and clearly? It all seemed so simple under Slot, but it’s not. The conclusion is that you can’t compare a new manager to Arne. That’s almost impossible."
