Mark OgdenMay 30, 2026, 08:30 AM ET

Andoni Iraola is the leading candidate to succeed Arne Slot as Liverpool head coach, sources have told ESPN.

Iraola, 43, is a free agent after leaving Premier League rivals AFC Bournemouth at the end of the season following the club's most successful league season that ended with the Cherries qualifying for the Europa League for the first time in its history.

Sources have told ESPN that Liverpool are determined to assess potential candidates before landing on a favoured option to replace Slot, who was fired on Saturday after two years in charge at Anfield. But despite the Liverpool hierarchy's plans to scour the market, sources have said that Iraola is already the front-runner due to a number of factors in the former Rayo Vallecano coach's favour.

Slot's dismissal was in some part due to Liverpool's determination to play a more aggressive, high-energy style of football and Iraola's Bournemouth enjoyed success playing in that fashion.

Iraola's instant availability means that he could start immediately at Anfield, but his long-standing relationship with Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes, who hired him when fulfilling a similar role at Bournemouth in 2023, is a significant factor in Iraola being the top candidate for Liverpool.

Sources have said that Iraola's £10 million-a-year salary demand at Bournemouth, which the club was unable to meet, will not be an issue at Liverpool where Slot was on a similar pay deal.

Sources have said that Liverpool assessed Iraola, then at Vallecano, as a potential long-term replacement for Jurgen Klopp four years ago and that the Anfield hierarchy regard him as a rising star who has proven Premier League credentials.

VfB Stuttgart's Sebastian Hoeness and RC Lens coach Pierre Sage also have admirers at Anfield, but Iraola's Premier League pedigree with Bournemouth and his connection to Hughes has put him clear as thew frontrunner for the job.

Source: https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/48918737/andoni-iraola-frontrunner-succeed-slot-liverpool-boss