It has been over 24 hours since Arne Slot was sacked by Liverpool and the players are beginning to respond to the news
Rio Ngumoha has led the tributes to former Liverpool head coach Arne Slot following his sacking. The 17-year-old starlet was handed his debut by the Dutchman as the teenager became a key player during the end of his tenure.
Captain Virgil van Dijk started the messages of support for the tactician after he was dismissed as Liverpool head coach on Saturday after nearly two years. Slot etched himself in history at Anfield and Reds folklore after guiding the club to their second Premier League crown during his debut season.
However, a significant downturn in form during their failed title defence saw them lose 20 times in all competitions. As a result of their dour performances throughout the campaign, pressure mounted on Slot and less than a week after the season finished, the Liverpool hierarchy wielded their axe.
Ngumoha was among the players to follow Van Dijk in expressing their gratitude towards the former Feyenoord boss. The teenager wrote on Instagram: “Thankyou Gaffer.”
Summer signings Hugo Ekitike and Jeremie Frimpong both paid tribute to the Dutchman. Ekitike was one of the standout players during Slot’s second season and the Frenchman contributed during key moments when his fellow summer arrivals struggled, including Frimpong who faced injury issues during his first campaign on Merseyside.
The former PSG man said: “Thank you for everything that you taught me and for the time you gave me both on and off the pitch. I wish you all the very best coach.”
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Frimpong, meanwhile, said in a post to his Instagram story: “Thank you for everything coach, all the best for the future!”
Ryan Gravenberch took time out of his World Cup preparations to send a message to the departing head coach. Under the tutelage of Slot, the former Ajax and Bayern Munich midfielder proved to be a crucial cog in the midfield but failed to continue his high-level performances during the second campaign.
He said: “Thank you for everything, coach! Lifting the Premier League trophy together was an incredible achievement and a moment I’ll never forget. Wishing you all the best for the future.”
The news of Slot’s departure is said to come as a surprise with former Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola named as the frontrunner to replace him.
The 47-year-old had his sights set on next season after securing Champions League qualification and following the 1-1 draw with Brentford, he was reflective on his own shortfalls throughout the campaign.
He said: “We, I haven’t been perfect, but I would have answered this question exactly the same in the year we won the league because as a manager you can never be perfect [and] a player can never be perfect.
“But all the decisions I’ve made throughout the whole season has been only with one idea, and that’s being very well prepared. So, all the decisions I made were never made from, ‘Oh, I have no time, let’s make a decision like this.’
“No, I thought about it really well and as you know, not every decision can be the right one so it would be stupid for me to sit here and say all the decisions I’ve made were the right ones. But before I made them, it every time felt they were the right ones to make.
“But a lot of times I didn’t even have to make decisions or choices because this [game] was maybe the first time this season that there were no Academy players on our bench – and that has been an exception.”
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