Former Reds forward Dirk Kuyt is being lined up by the club to join Arne Slot’s coaching staff.
Peter O’Rourke has reported that Kuyt will join the rest of the backroom staff at Liverpool to replace John Heitinga, who is expected to leave in the coming weeks.
Heitinga has been granted permission by the club to enter talks with Ajax about their vacant head coach position. If he departs, Kuyt is seen as a natural successor due to his deep ties to both Liverpool and Dutch football.
Dirk Kuyt, like Arne Slot, also has a strong connection with the Dutch side Feyenoord. He retired at the club in 2017, having scored a hat-trick in the last game of the season to secure Feyenoord their first title since 1999. Kuyt also had a stint as under-19 manager at the club from 2018-2020.
Speaking to the Athletic before this season, Kuyt described the current Reds boss as “an excellent communicator and man manager.”
Recently, Kuyt has been managing in Belgium with Beerschot, whom he helped win the second division title and promotion to the top flight in 2024.
However, the Dutchman is expected to leave Beerschot this summer, with his contract expiring and his team finishing bottom of the Belgian Pro League.
The 41-year-old spent six years at Liverpool during his playing career, making 285 appearances, scoring 71 goals and registering 41 assists. He only won one trophy with the Reds, the 2012 EFL Cup, where he scored an extra-time goal to help Liverpool beat Cardiff at Wembley.
Liverpool: Champions not resting on their laurels
Despite winning their 20th league title in 2024/25, in Arne Slot’s first season, the Reds are set for a summer of arrivals and departures, both with players and staff.
The expected backroom departure of John Heitinga to Ajax and the potential appointment of Dirk Kuyt to Arne Slot’s staff are among the expected changes to come.
The long-expected departure of Trent Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid is just one of the outgoings this summer, with Caoimhin Kelleher and Kostas Tsimikas also expected to depart.
Kelleher is expected to leave to make room for incoming Giorgi Mamardashvili, who is arriving from Valencia, but the Irishman does have a host of suitors waiting for him, including Leeds United and Bournemouth.
Liverpool’s recruitment team is also expected to splash the cash with deals for Bayer Leverkusen duo Jeremie Frimpong and Florian Wirtz edging closer day by day.
The Reds are also expected to make a move for Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez in the coming days. Liverpool’s interest in the Hungary international has stemmed from his impressive season on the South Coast in the Premier League.