van Bronckhorst joins Arne Slot's backroom staff | OneFootball

Liverpool have confirmed that Giovanni van Bronckhorst has joined Arne Slot’s backroom staff as assistant coach.

The Dutchman steps in following the departure of John Heitinga, who left earlier this summer to take over as Ajax’s head coach.

It’s Van Bronckhorst’s first role since leaving Besiktas last year, and he brings with him a wealth of managerial experience, having previously been in charge of Feyenoord, Rangers and Chinese side Guangzhou.

In a further addition to the staff, Xavi Valero is making a return to the Reds as head of first-team goalkeeping. He rejoins the club after seven years at West Ham, where he worked under several managers.

Valero is no stranger to Anfield, having first arrived in 2007 under Rafael Benítez. He remained part of Benítez’s team during spells at Inter, Chelsea, Napoli and Real Madrid, before moving to the Hammers in 2018.

He now comes back to Merseyside to take over from Fabian Otte and Claudio Taffarel, both of whom have moved on from Liverpool’s goalkeeping setup.