Tottenham catches a bone with Feyenoord director Te Kloese, Slot not (yet) in the picture
NOS Football––Customized
Tottenham Hotspur has not (yet) applied for Feyenoord coach Arne Slot, says general manager Dennis te Kloese in conversation with ESPN. The English already made an attempt at Te Kloese himself.
Te Kloese started working for the Rotterdammers early last year, who became national champions last week. The success logically led to interest, including for Te Kloese.
He could become the new technical director at Tottenham Hotspur. “To deny that is not correct, but I made a conscious choice to join Feyenoord. There is still a lot of work ahead and the sporting successes have been an incredible move in the right direction.”
“For me, therefore, leaving is not an option at the moment. Not professionally and not personally either. I want to be clear about that. Tottenham is not going to happen,” Te Kloese said.
Leeds concrete in February
According to the general manager, the English currently have no interest in success coach Slot, who still has a two-year commitment at Rotterdam-Zuid.
“No, there has been no request from Tottenham. In February there was concrete interest from Leeds United, but we and Arne said ‘no’ to that. Arne didn’t want to go to Leeds and I think that was a very good decision.”
Te Kloese did indicate that agreements were made with Slot before the summer of 2024. For the time being he assumes that Slot will also be trainer of Feyenoord next season.
“We went down a road with Arne, broke open his contract last year. We are more than satisfied with him and if there is interest in his person, we will hear about it. Sometimes it’s just also very nice to realize what you have.”
Watch below what Slot had to say about the alleged interest from England on Friday at the press conference before the game with FC Emmen, among other things.
Slot releases nothing about future: ‘Choose to say as little as possible’
Te Kloese also addressed captain Orkun Kökçu, who may take the next step in his soccer career after the season. He is still under contract until mid-2025.
“Orkun is having an insane season. He has made incredible strides both on and off the pitch. It will be a challenge to keep him for Feyenoord.”
According to Te Kloese, should Kökçu leave, there must be a huge million-dollar fee in return. “We will be high up in the tree when clubs come forward,” he said.
