Arne Slot says he withdrew from Netherlands talks to remain in club football

Former Liverpool head coach Arne Slot confirmed on 12 August 2026 that he held discussions about the vacant Netherlands managerial position but withdrew because he wants his next role to be in club football. Slot, who replaced Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool boss in May 2024, issued the clarification amid reports about the national team vacancy.

Slot guided Liverpool to their 20th league title in his debut season but finished fifth in the Premier League and was sacked on 30 May. He won the Eredivisie with Feyenoord in 2023. Ronald Koeman stepped down from his second spell as Netherlands manager after the team were knocked out of the World Cup by Morocco in a last-32 penalty shootout in June.

Slot denied media claims that he had pulled out of the Netherlands process following a contractual dispute. "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past few days, various reports have appeared regarding the vacancy at the Dutch national team, suggesting that I had withdrawn from the process after lengthy negotiations, including regarding salary and contract duration," Slot told Voetbal International.

He rejected the suggestion that protracted talks, including over salary and contract length, had taken place. "That speculation is incorrect. We simply never reached that stage of the talks."

Slot said his current career preference is to work daily with players at club level and that this shaped his decision to step away from further discussions. "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 said.

He outlined why he chose not to pursue negotiations and expressed respect for the national setup and the KNVB. "And (this is) why I chose not to continue the talks and not to start negotiations on what a possible contract might look like. "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. "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."

Reports in the Netherlands say former Portugal manager Roberto Martinez is now in talks with the KNVB.