Liverpool have opened negotiations with Feyenoord as they ramp up their efforts to make Arne Slot the successor to Jurgen Klopp as manager.

The Reds have identified 45-year-old Slot as the preferred candidate for the role, which Klopp will vacate at the end of the season after almost nine years in charge.

On Wednesday morning, senior sources at Feyenoord refused to rule out a move from Slot this summer amid Liverpool interest with officials from Anfield now in contact with the Eredivisie side's CEO Dennis te Kloese to discuss the terms of a potential move.

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The Dutchman is under contract until 2026 but is understood to welcome the opportunity of a move to Anfield. It's been suggested Slot would be keen to bring assistant Sipke Hulshoff with him to Merseyside should he succeed Klopp and Liverpool's backroom staff will be in need of a rebuild as Klopp's assistants Pep Lijnders and Peter Krawietz get set to walk away alongside elite-development coach Vitor Matos.

Liverpool are keen to show Feyenoord respect throughout the process and wanted to avoid any disruption to Slot's preparation ahead of his team's successful KNVB Beker final meeting with NEC, but the pathway for negotiations has become easier to navigate since Sunday's 1-0 win at home stadium De Kuip.

Slot is understood not to have a release clause in his contract with suggestions Feyenoord may be willing accept a fee of less than €10million as compensation for losing their head coach. The Dutch side, though, are determined to realise a true value for Slot.

Liverpool have a good relationship with Slot's agent, Rafaela Pimenta, the Brazilian lawyer who also looks after the interests of Manchester City striker Erling Haaland among others. Pimenta was a guest at Anfield for a Premier League game last season.

While Slot is now an overwhelming favourite to become their next manager, the Reds are continuing to assess other targets with the deal no means a formality. It's believed Bayern Munich and Barcelona are among other clubs to have also been impressed by Slot's work in Holland.

On Tuesday, Feyenoord cancelled a regular press conference for Wednesday to preview their game at Go Ahead Eagles the following day.

Slot has been in charge of the Dutch side for three seasons, reaching the Europa Conference League final in 2022 and then winning their first Eredivisie title in six years last term. Feyenoord are second in the table this campaign and at the weekend won the Dutch Cup.

It is understood Slot has become strongly fancied by the Anfield hierarchy given he fits all of the criteria that have been set out during the process of finding Klopp's replacement, which is being led by Fenway Sports Group chief executive of football Michael Edwards.

FSG have known about the need for a new manager since Klopp told them of his decision to stand down back in November but the process of securing a replacement has only intensified in recent weeks with the Boston-based organisation keen to restructure the club before sourcing a successor.

That meant former sporting director Edwards was appointed last month to effectively replace Mike Gordon as the head of the club while Richard Hughes will leave his post as Bournemouth's sporting director at the end of the campaign to take up a similar position at Anfield from June 1.

He will bring with him Mark Burchill, the Cherries' chief scout, who will support Barry Hunter and Dave Fallows in the recruitment department alongside director of research Will Spearman and his team.