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Sipke Hulshoff is Liverpool FC’s new assistant coach, arriving alongside Arne Slot, and you may be asking just who is he?
Hulshoff is the man who has been chosen to effectively fill Pepijn Lijnders‘ shoes, but he will be officially known as the first assistant coach – rather than assistant manager.
Of Hulshoff, Slot told LFCTV: “Because we work together for such a long time, I think the both of us know exactly what we want when it comes to game model, playing style – and I think that helps.”
Who is Sipke Hulshoff?
At 49 years old, the Dutchman has plenty of experience in the bank and is a well-respected figure in football.
Having worked with Slot at both SC Cambuur and Feyenoord, he also acted as Ronald Koeman’s assistant for the Netherlands from January 2023.
He left that job, though, ahead of Euro 2024 to move to Merseyside and help make the transition in pre-season as smooth as possible.
Hulshoff comes with the welcome experience of having already worked with club captain Virgil van Dijk, as well as Cody Gakpo and Ryan Gravenberch.
Speaking during Hulshoff’s first camp with the Dutch squad, Van Dijk praised his impact in training, describing the coach as “very clear and tactically strong.”
He explained to vi.nl: “Of course I didn’t know Sipke Hulshoff before this. You have to get to know each other.
“You see what his qualities are and I personally certainly like that. Hopefully, he can continue that well.
“He is very clear and tactically strong, I like the moments when he leads a training session. I think I also speak for the group. We’re only four days into it, but it’s a good start.”
Hulshoff’s career path
Unlike Slot, Hulshoff’s coaching career extends beyond just Holland. He spent time at Red Bull Ghana, first as a youth coach then first team manager, before very briefly taking over as caretaker manager at Qatari club Al-Arabi SC.
He began to make his name, though, at Cambuur where he was assistant manager and stepped in as caretaker boss on three occasions.
His career then took him to FC Volendam, before rejoining Slot at Feyenoord where he initially coached the under-21s.
He was then promoted to the assistant manager’s role and helped guide Feyenoord to the Eredivisie title, Dutch Cup success and the Europa Conference League final.
The 2023/24 season saw the Dutch side finish second with a record points tally for the club – that’s a feeling we Liverpool fans know about!
They did, however, win the Dutch Cup to compensate for the runners-up spot.
The job at Liverpool
While Slot’s job title may be different to Jurgen Klopp‘s, officially taking the mantle as head coach rather than manager, Hulshoff will pretty much have the same role Lijnders had on Merseyside.
This involves working closely with the boss, preparing training sessions, often leading them, and having tactical input from the bench.
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