"I experienced that in Madrid" - Wesley Sneijder warns Arne Slot with Liverpool transfer advice
Former Netherlands international Wesley Sneijder has warned Arne Slot from signing too many Dutch players after taking charge at Liverpool. The highly-regarded 45-year-old manager is likely to take the reins from Jurgen Klopp at Anfield in the summer and will have a tough job at hand in replacing the German.
With Slot set to be appointed the next Liverpool manager, Sneijder has urged his compatriot to abstain from bringing too many Dutch players. He cited the example of his time at Real Madrid when Los Blancos had four players from the Netherlands and struggled to do well.
The former Inter Milan star was quoted as saying by The Liverpool World:
"I would be careful with that, with bringing in too many Dutch people. I experienced that in Madrid. When I came, only Ruud van Nistelrooij, Royston Drenthe, and Arjen Robben were there. And the following year, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Rafael van der Vaart arrived."
“If the four of us play football somewhere, we’re not going to talk Spanish to each other, you keep talking in your mother tongue anyway. You shouldn’t start attracting too many Dutch people to you,” Sneijder added.
The Reds already have a pretty strong Dutch contingent in the form of skipper Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo, and Ryan Gravenberch. Van Dijk is already an influential player while the other two are also highly rated and could be solid long-term options for the Reds.
Arsenal legend claims he would have loved to play for Liverpool
Cesc Fabregas has claimed that he would have loved to play for Liverpool for the club's incredible fanbase. The Spaniard had a glittering career for club and country during which he played for huge clubs like Arsenal, Barcelona, and Chelsea.
However, he has admitted that he would have loved to play for the Reds because of the club's passionate fans.
"One fanbase I would have liked to experience being a player for is Liverpool," he said.
Fabregas made his name at Arsenal having arrived from Barcelona in 2003 as a teenager. He eventually became the captain of the Gunners before moving back to Barcelona and later played for Chelsea.
The technically gifted Spanish playmaker hung up his boots last year with Serie B side Como being his last club.