Five next move options for Arne Slot after inevitable Liverpool sack include Spurs, Real Madrid | OneFootball

With Liverpool facing an uphill fight to qualify for the Champions League following Manchester City’s comeback win at Anfield, head coach Arne Slot looks doomed to lose his job around a year after guiding the Reds to their 20th Premier League title.

Slot would likely already be out of work had he not had credit in the bank after last season, while mitigating factors such as the sad passing of Diogo Jota, FSG’s misguided transfer activity, and the decline of their key stars also ensure that they have made one of the weakest title defences in Premier League history.

But it has become increasingly difficult to defend Slot as he quickly loses fan support due to his uninspiring tactics and Liverpool’s dire form/performances.

His sacking has looked inevitable for a while, but the ‘disillusioned’ head coach could jump before he is pushed, as he is already reportedly planning his next move. With that, here are five potential next managerial jobs for the soon-to-be former Liverpool boss…

Real Madrid

A report from Hooligan Soccer this week claimed Slot ‘believes that his style of play would be better suited to a continental side such as Bayern Munich or Real Madrid’, while he reckons ‘leaving under his own terms would give him better opportunities, and he might exercise that option’.

Slot would be falling on his feet, a la Vincent Kompany, if he landed at either of these European giants next, but Real Madrid and Bayern Munich could join a host of Premier League sides searching for a new head coach ahead of next season.

In Real Madrid’s case, current boss Alvaro Arbeloa appears to have a short shelf life after replacing sacked predecessor Xabi Alonso, and the not entirely trustworthy Spanish media want us all to think that Jurgen Klopp will be their next permanent manager.

But the reality is very different; Klopp will surely know better than to have his grand managerial return (if there ever is one) with the basket case that is Real Madrid, and he would clash with president Florentino Perez just as he did with FSG.

Slot, meanwhile, has proven with Liverpool that he can have more of a hands-off approach regarding transfers and the overall running of a club, so at least in that sense, he would be a better fit.

Bayern Munich

Alternatively, Slot could fail upwards from Liverpool and replace Kompany at Bayern Munich.

Kompany did just that after getting a relegation on his CV with Burnley, but he has done a better job than initially expected at Bayern Munich and restored order for the annual Bundesliga champions after Alonso’s heroics at Bayer Leverkusen.

His next job will be to guide the German giants to their seventh Champions League crown, but there is the possibility of him replacing Pep Guardiola at Manchester City in the near future.

At which point, Slot swooping in to replace him is not wholly inconceivable, and this move would enable him to reunite with a player whose exit from Liverpool left him ‘seething’. 

Netherlands

The managerial roundabout will be in full swing in the summer, partly because 10 Premier League bosses are fortunate to still be in a job. But also because there is bound to be movement involving those in charge of nations at this summer’s World Cup.

England’s Thomas Tuchel, Germany’s Julian Nagelsmann and the United States’ Mauricio Pochettino are already having their names thrown around for club vacancies in the summer, while Netherlands boss Ronald Koeman could be another to move on after the World Cup.

Koeman, whose contract is due to expire after the World Cup, came under pressure as the Netherlands stumbled to a semi-final loss to England at Euro 2024 and will have to mastermind a special effort to earn another contract.

Once the Netherlands move past Koeman, they would be pretty foolish not to at least discuss the job with Slot, who is arguably the best active Dutch manager around at the moment.

Tottenham Hotspur

Slot was once the ‘frontrunner’ to be Tottenham Hotspur manager as he was touted as a replacement for Antonio Conte in 2023, while Leeds United were another Premier League club to miss out before his move to Liverpool in 2024.

The north London club instead appointed Ange Postecoglou, whose chaotic reign at Spurs was no worse than what is currently being served up by Thomas Frank. 

Frank has Spurs, whether they like it or not, firmly in a Premier League relegation battle with 12 games of the 2025/26 campaign left, which is a sackable offence in itself. And the head coach’s prolonged stay is made more baffling by the fact that his footballing philosophy is such a poor fit for the struggling side.

A move to Spurs via the scenic route is perhaps more likely than a switch to one of those two aforementioned European giants, and this appointment, given their ongoing plight, would still arguably constitute a pretty good coup for the London side.

This season does little to impact Howe’s reputation as one of Newcastle’s best-ever managers and perhaps is England’s likely next boss after Tuchel, while the Magpies can turn to another top-level manager to eventually take them to the next level via more PSR-inflicted transfer frustration.

Jose Mourinho will be linked with Newcastle until the end of time, but Slot would be a far more sustainable, albeit less exciting alternative for their next phase.