Liverpool has officially announced the addition of former Everton defender John Heitinga to Arne Slot’s coaching staff. The Dutchman joins as an assistant coach, part of Slot’s evolving backroom team.
Heitinga, who previously held positions at Ajax and West Ham, left the latter after David Moyes’ departure last season. During his 15-year playing career, he represented Ajax, Atletico Madrid, Everton, Fulham, and Hertha Berlin, and earned 87 caps for the Netherlands as a hard-tackling centre-back.
Now, Heitinga brings his growing coaching expertise to Liverpool’s first team, working alongside Slot’s staff members Sipke Hulshoff and Ruben Peeters. His previous managerial experience includes leading Ajax to 14 wins, three draws, and five losses, finishing third in the Eredivisie and as runners-up in the KNVB Cup. Notably, he faced Slot’s Feyenoord twice, losing 3-2 in the league but winning 2-1 in the KNVB Cup semi-finals.
Heitinga’s familiarity with the Premier League is expected to be crucial, given that most of Slot’s staff, including the head coach, lack extensive experience in English football.
In addition to Heitinga, Liverpool has also appointed Fabian Otte as head of first-team goalkeeper coaching and Aaron Briggs as first-team individual development coach. This comes after a summer of significant changes, with the departures of Jurgen Klopp and several key coaches, including Pepijn Lijnders, Peter Krawietz, Vitor Matos, Andreas Kornmayer, John Achterberg, Jack Robinson, and Andreas Schlumberger.
Liverpool’s attempt to bring Etienne Reijnen from Feyenoord alongside Slot, Hulshoff, and Peeters was thwarted by work permit issues. The club is currently seeking a specialist set-piece coach, with the position yet to be filled, and is believed to have made an internal hire for a new strength and conditioning coach. Additionally, Liverpool is targeting another first-team physio and has advertised for two positions on their data team.
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