Liverpool face Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday with the chance to crown themselves as Premier League winners.
The Reds would have won the title had Crystal Palace beaten Arsenal on Wednesday, but can now finish the job themselves at Anfield.
Tottenham are favourable opposition for Liverpool, with Ange Postecoglou’s team struggling way down in 16th place in the Premier League table.
With a Europa League semi-final to focus on in midweek, Spurs are unlikely to be going full tilt at Anfield.
It could be a special day for the Reds and a slightly strange one for Postecoglou who grew up as a Liverpool fan.
But while the Spurs manager has links to Liverpool, so Arne Slot has an intertwined past with Tottenham. Had he not taken himself out of the running 2023, Slot could well have ended up in charge of the north Londoners.
What Arne Slot said after rejecting Tottenham job
There is no telling which version of Tottenham will turn up at Anfield on Sunday. They have both beaten and been heavily beaten by Liverpool this season.
Under Postecoglou Spurs have become a parody of themselves as a soft touch who all too often capitulate in the most extreme of ways.
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In many ways they are the opposite of Slot’s Liverpool, which makes the fact they were targeting the Dutch coach in 2023 all the more intriguing.
According to The Athletic, Slot was in ‘pole position’ to join Spurs in May 2023, moving ahead of Postecoglou in the running. There is said to have been an expectation that the then Feyenoord boss would be appointed.
However, with another round of interviews reportedly scheduled, Slot unexpectedly pulled out of the running and signed a new contract with Feyenoord.
“Because of the way we work here, the way I work with my staff, the players we have, the facilities we have,” Slot explained on his decision to stay at De Kuip.
“And the thing is, I think the possibilities we have here in the near future, and the longer-term future, are still challenging for me. We are going to play Champions League, which I have never done before, as a player or as a coach, which I am looking forward to. The club is in a really good place.
“I felt I want to work for longer, based on the project, to see what comes from that. Because you go every time, after one or two successful seasons. But in the end, where and what are you then? Sometimes you also have to cherish what you have.”
How would Slot have managed at Tottenham?
It is impossible to say how Slot would have got on at Spurs, but it’s safe to say that Tottenham’s loss was certainly Liverpool’s gain.
Had the 46-year-old made good on his tag as Daniel Levy’s favourite, he would clearly have been out of the running to succeed Jurgen Klopp one year later.
From a Spurs point of view it can be easy to view Postecoglou’s reign through the eyes of what will likely be a bottom-half league finish. But he guided them to fifth last season and could yet win the Europa League.
So, although we’d wager that Slot would have had Tottenham back in the top four by now, this is perhaps a case of everyone ending up where they should have.
If those Spurs fans and players do watch Liverpool and Slot collect a 20th league title at Anfield on Sunday, however, they could be forgiven for wondering what could have been.