Alisson Becker assessment speaks volumes as biggest ally leaving Liverpool this summer

It is going to be a summer of change at Liverpool with several members of Jürgen Klopp's backroom team following him out of the club. The Reds announced Klopp's exit back in January, confirming assistant Pep Lijnders and coaches Vitor Matos and Peter Krawietz will also be leaving.

Arne Slot is set to take over from Klopp, with his appointment believed to be close, and he may now need to seek another staff addition. According to The Athletic, long-serving goalkeeper coach John Achterberg will exit Anfield at the end of the season.

Achterberg has been at Liverpool for 15 years, initially joining the club's academy staff. More recently, he has headed up the goalkeeping department and has a close relationship with Klopp.

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It was in fact the 52-year-old who recommended Alisson Becker to Klopp, having studied the Brazilian closely during his time at AS Roma. Alisson joined Liverpool in 2018 and has previously hailed the influence of the Reds coach, who it's clear he respected and valued extremely highly.

He told Liverpool's official website: "John has proved to be not just a great goalkeeping coach but a great guy, a great person. He leaves me very calm and relaxed on a day-to-day basis and we learn from each other’s work.

"I’ve pointed out some areas that contribute to his work and likewise he has helped me with things I can improve in on the pitch. I believe the relationship between a goalkeeper and the goalkeeping coach needs to be an exchange, with a great deal of trust"

Achterberg moved into a more senior role in 2021 when the Reds brought in World Cup winner Claudio Taffarel. He is also part of the Brazilian national set-up, working with Alisson, and Manchester City stopper Ederson.

Taffarel has had more hands-on duties this season, working with the Reds' No.1 and understudy Caoimhín Kelleher. After that appointment, Klopp told the Liverpool ECHO: "We want to create our own goalkeeping philosophy and we thought it made sense to mix it up with a coach who was a world-class player and already works with two of the best goalies in the world in Alisson and Ederson."

It remains to be seen if Slot will add to his goalkeeping staff. He is expected to bring his No.2 Sipke Hulshoff with him from Feyenoord, as well as head of performance Ruben Peeters and technical advisor Etiënne Reijnen.

Liverpool.com says: Achterberg has been a massive part of the Liverpool backroom team for years, working with Klopp, Brendan Rodgers and Sir Kenny Dalglish. He has helped develop Alisson into one of the best goalkeepers in the world and the Reds stopper holds him in very high regard. Slot must focus on getting his own men in, who can maintain the standards set by the previous regime.