Arne Slot hailed for not making same MISTAKE as Man Utd manager Erik ten Hag

Recently retired Dutch footballer Bram van Polen has praised Arne Slot for not making a key mistake that Erik ten Hag has made at Manchester United. 

Van Polen hung up his boots at the end of the 2023/24 season after a remarkable 17-year career with PEC Zwolle in the Netherlands, playing alongside Slot during the Liverpool head coach's time at the club between 2010 and 2013.

The PEC Zwolle legend will be rooting for his former teammate as he prepares for his first season as Liverpool boss, succeeding the iconic Jurgen Klopp at Anfield.

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Van Polen believes Slot has already avoided falling into the same trap as his compatriot Erik ten Hag, who recently signed a contract extension as Man Utd boss.

The 38-year-old has praised Slot for not hiring too many Dutch people upon his arrival at Liverpool, with that potentially sending the wrong message.

"It is also dangerous that Ten Hag gathers so many Dutch people around him. You don’t know whether that is wise," said Van Polen.

"You're a bit afraid of that. Then you think: here we go again. Because he brings in all those Dutch people, we will also be less good abroad.

"I think that a Slot is very conscious about not recruiting all Dutch people at once. You do create a certain image, and you should partly want to stay away from that."

Arne Slot Erik ten Hag

Ten Hag has recruited former Man Utd striker Ruud van Nistelrooy and Dutch coach Rene Hake to his backroom staff this summer, as well as signing Joshua Zirkzee as the club's new striker. The former Bologna forward looks likely to be joined by his Netherlands teammate Matthijs de Light at Old Trafford in the coming weeks.

Ten Hag has previously signed Dutchmen Tyrell Malacia and Wout Weghorst at Man Utd, while also recruiting Lisandro Martinez and Antony from former club Ajax.

ARNE SLOT'S DUTCH CONNECTIONS

Liverpool already boasted four Dutch stars prior to Slot's arrival, with Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo, Ryan Gravenberch and Sepp van den Berg all donning red.

However, while Van Polen has praised Slot for not simply hiring his fellow countrymen, the 45-year-old has brought in Dutch coach Sipke Hulshoff as his assistant manager.

It's expected that former Everton defender and Netherlands international John Heitinga will join the club's staff in the near future as well. 

Liverpool have been linked with plenty of Dutch stars this summer now that Slot has arrived on Merseyside, one of whom is his former Feyenoord defender Lutsharel Geertruida. 

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