Liverpool players show true feelings on Arne Slot sacking as Virgil van Dijk leads the way

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Liverpool star Hugo Ekitike has led tributes to Arne Slot after he was dismissed by the Reds. Seventeen-year-old sensation Rio Ngumoha was among the players expressing their gratitude to the head coach after he was handed his first-team debut by the Dutchman, going on to become an integral figure during the closing stages of his reign.

Captain Virgil van Dijk was first to post messages of support for the manager after he was relieved of his duties as Liverpool head coach on Saturday, nearly two years into the job. Slot carved his name into Anfield history and Reds folklore by steering the club to their second Premier League title in his very first season in charge.

Yet a dramatic slump in form during their unsuccessful title defence saw them suffer 20 defeats across all competitions. With their dismal displays throughout the campaign piling the pressure on Slot, the Liverpool hierarchy pulled the trigger less than a week after the season drew to a close.

Ngumoha was among those to follow Van Dijk's lead in expressing their appreciation for the former Feyenoord manager. The teenager posted on Instagram : "Thankyou Gaffer."

Summer recruits Hugo Ekitike and Jeremie Frimpong both offered their own tributes to the Dutchman. Ekitike was one of the standout performers throughout Slot's second season, with the Frenchman stepping up during crucial moments when fellow summer signings faltered, including Frimpong, who was hampered by injury throughout his debut campaign on Merseyside.

Ekitike said: "Thank you for everything that you taught me and for the time you gave me both on and off the pitch. I wish you all the very best coach."

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Frimpong, meanwhile, wrote in an Instagram story post: "Thank you for everything coach, all the best for the future!"

Ryan Gravenberch took a moment away from his World Cup preparations to pay tribute to the departing head coach. Under Slot's guidance, the former Ajax and Bayern Munich midfielder proved to be a vital component in the engine room, though he struggled to maintain those impressive displays during the second campaign.

He said: "Thank you for everything, coach! Lifting the Premier League trophy together was an incredible achievement and a moment I'll never forget. Wishing you all the best for the future."

The news of Slot's exit is reported to have caught many off guard, with former Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola understood to be the leading candidate to step into his shoes.

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The 47-year-old had his eyes firmly fixed on the coming season after clinching Champions League qualification, and following the 1-1 draw with Brentford, he was candid about his own limitations throughout the campaign.

He said: "We, I haven't been perfect, but I would have answered this question exactly the same in the year we won the league because as a manager you can never be perfect [and] a player can never be perfect.

"But all the decisions I've made throughout the whole season has been only with one idea, and that's being very well prepared. So, all the decisions I made were never made from, 'Oh, I have no time, let's make a decision like this.'

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"No, I thought about it really well and as you know, not every decision can be the right one so it would be stupid for me to sit here and say all the decisions I've made were the right ones. But before I made them, it every time felt they were the right ones to make.