Dirk Kuyt convinced he knows who Arne Slot's first Liverpool signing already is

Former Liverpool winger Dirk Kuyt has tipped Feyenoord defender Lutsharel Geertruida to be the first signing of the Arne Slot era.

New sporting director Richard Hughes has made it clear that a defensive signing could be on the cards for Liverpool during this summer transfer window.

Virgil van Dijk's contract is up next year, and another defender to throw into the mix for new manager Slot would be a huge bonus as a new regime takes over at Anfield.

Arriving from Feyenoord in the Eredivisie, it is one of Slot's former players, with whom he won the league and KNVB Cup, that ex-Reds forward Kuyt has predicted will be their first recruit.

Geertruida is a versatile defender, much like Joe Gomez, in the sense that he is comfortable playing both right-back and centre-half. Born in Rotterdam, the 23-year-old has remained in the city his entire playing career, starting off with various youth teams before joining Sparta Rotterdam's academy. He made the Feyenoord switch in 2012.

Kuyt exclusively told Ladbrokes 1-2-Free : "I think Liverpool could do with strengthening in defence, and in midfield. But a lot will depend on who will be leaving the club, because then you can see exactly what you need to bring in. That being said, if not many players leave this summer, I don't think Arne [Slot] will change too much.

"If he's going to buy, he'll know what this team needs, and I'm sure he'll only bring in something the team doesn't already have. But we have a pretty decent team, and I think Arne is very happy with the players who are already there, and I think he's trying everything to keep as many players in as possible.

"The level from Holland to England is at least two steps higher, so it's not easy to make that move. So when you're talking about Feyenoord players joining Arne at Liverpool, I think Lutsharel Geertruida is the one, really, who would be able to make that move.

"Lutsharel is someone I'd love to see playing in the Premier League. I really think he'd fit into English football. He has great stamina, he's great on the ball, he's physically strong... he's capable of making the step up to the Premier League.

"I'm asked a lot about players who I think are good enough to step up to the level of Liverpool, or the Premier League in general, from Holland, and Lutsharel is definitely one of them. Hopefully he has the chance, one day, to play in the Premier League - and hopefully that's in a Liverpool shirt."

With Van Dijk already at the club, and defensive reinforcements likely to arrive on the back of Joel Matip's departure, Geertruida could reunite with his old coach at Anfield. The 23-year-old is currently at Euro 2024 and could come against some of his future team-mates when the Netherlands and England meet in the semi-final.