Arne Slot, the former Liverpool head coach, has confirmed that he engaged in discussions regarding the vacant Netherlands national team managerial role. However, Slot stated that he withdrew from consideration because his preference is to continue working in club football.
Slot, 47, recently concluded his tenure with Liverpool after guiding the team to their 20th league title in his first season. The club finished fifth in the Premier League and his departure was announced on May 30.
Recent reports had suggested that Slot had exited the talks with the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) due to disagreements over contract terms. Addressing these speculations, Slot clarified that such discussions never materialized. "Over the past few weeks, and particularly the past few days, various reports have appeared regarding the vacancy at the Dutch national team, suggesting that I had withdrawn from the process after lengthy negotiations, including regarding salary and contract duration," Slot told Voetbal International. "That speculation is incorrect. We simply never reached that stage of the talks."
The Dutchman, who previously led Feyenoord to an Eredivisie title in 2023, did not entirely dismiss the possibility of managing the national team in the future. He expressed a desire to remain actively involved in daily training sessions with players, a commitment that is more challenging to fulfill in a national team capacity. "At this stage of my career, I prefer to see myself on the training pitch with my players every day. Something that is simply not possible in the same way with a national team," he explained.
Slot emphasized his respect for the national team and the KNVB, noting the professional nature of their discussions. "I have enormous respect for the national team and for the KNVB and can only be positive about the professional manner in which the talks proceeded that week," he said. "For now, I believe that club football still has a lot to offer me."
He added, "It would be a great honour to represent my country as national coach one day. However, this was not the right moment for me."
Following Slot's confirmation, reports in the Netherlands indicate that former Portugal manager Roberto Martinez is now in discussions with the KNVB for the position. Ronald Koeman had stepped down from his second spell as Netherlands manager after the team's exit from the World Cup at the last-32 stage in June.