Liverpool

Liverpool

Premier League • England

Next Liverpool manager: Monumental Xabi Alonso update destroys FSG plan as Leverkusen captain drops hint

Fresh reports have damaged Liverpool chances of appointing Xabi Alonso as their new manager

Fresh reports have damaged Liverpool chances of appointing Xabi Alonso as their new manager

Liverpool dreams of appointing Xabi Alonso as the heir to Jurgen Klopp at Anfield have been emphatically crushed by a strong new update in Germany – and despite the captain of Bayer Leverkusen explaining why he would not be shocked to see the manager move on.

The Merseyside giants are now just under three months from bidding a tearful farewell to legendary boss Klopp. Having won seven major trophies at Anfield so far, his exit at Liverpool will leave a huge void to fill and owners FSG with arguably the most-important decision of their 14-year tenure.

The exact final game at the Anfield helm for Klopp though remains unknown at this stage, with Liverpool still having high hopes of adding two more trophies to the Carabao Cup they have already collected this year.

Indeed, they are locked in a three-way battle for the Premier League title alongside Manchester City and Arsenal, are also through to the quarter-finals of the Europa League, where a test against Atalanta next lies in wait.

As a result, Klopp’s last game in charge will either be on Sunday May 19 at home to Wolves, or three days later in the Dublin staged Europa League final.

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Behind the scenes, though, efforts to land his successor are intensifying, with the hunt being led by Michael Edwards, who recently returned to Anfield under the new title of CEO of football.

Per widespread reports, Edwards has installed former Reds midfielder Alonso as his outstanding first choice to succeed Klopp, having been wowed by the stellar job he has done with Bundesliga table-toppers Bayer Leverkusen.

Bayer Leverkusen skipper expects Xabi Alonso to leave Leverkusen

With just eight games left to play, Leverkusen are 10 points clear of 11-time reigning champions Bayern Munich and could land the first league crown in their 120-year existence.

Understandably, Alonso finds himself a man in demand as a result, with Bayern Munich also among his admirers and hoping to lure him across Germany as Thomas Tuchel’s successor.

Either way, Leverkusen captain and Finland international goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky has made it plain that no-one at the club would hold it against Alonso were he to move on this summer.

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He has also talked up the qualities that make the 42-year-old such a special coach.

He said: “You guys don’t see him daily. But the atmosphere he’s brought in Leverkusen – we didn’t have it before – comes from what he has experienced in football.

“In Madrid, Liverpool – that’s the level we strive for every day. It was here when he came but it’s up here right now. We are pretty clear about what we do. Xabi brings a mentally-strong spirit from the top clubs – and he’s created a good atmosphere in the team.

“He’s brought a football intelligence with him. It’s the way he motivates daily. He lives the game as he did when he was a player.

‌”It’s standards, a winning mentality, training how you play, how you go on every action, each training session, intensity. That’s where the real secret is. Tactically, he’s fantastic.”

Exit for Alonso would come as no shock

Hradecky added: “He’s created the best Leverkusen team I’ve experienced. We have 18, 19, 20 players – and it doesn’t matter who plays.‌ There are a lot of different tactics. There’s a lot to take in from the opponents’ perspective – it’s hellishly difficult to play against us.

“It’s the staff he has, how we think about corners, how we think about pressing the game. Staying low or whatever, the hype is definitely justified, yeah.”

The 34-year-old goalkeeper admits it would come as no shock were Alonso to be lured away, adding: “No-one would be angry or argue if he wins the Bundesliga and decides to go another route. We see it daily that he loves to be in Leverkusen. He enjoys Dusseldorf where he lives.‌

“But if you look at it from another point of view: How can you make it better than this season? We have built something that’s worth a trophy. I hope it comes.

“Football is cruel sometimes, you don’t want Bayern breathing down your necks but hopefully the platform we have created is enough. We’re getting closer. That’s the mission.

“We have to keep believing. We are getting closer to our dream and I hope it happens. For Xabi, there is a lot to ponder but he’s enough of a gentleman to make the right decision and only he knows what’s best for him.”

Next Liverpool manager: Masssive update dents FSG plan for Alonso

However, all may not be plain sailing for Liverpool in their quest to appoint Alonso.

And after TEAMtalk revealed last month that the 42-year-old has serious reservations about stepping into Klopp’s sizeable shoes, especially so soon in his relatively-novice managerial career, a new report from Germany has also dealt FSG a monumental blow of landing their man.

As documented, Alonso is also the top target for Bayern Munich this summer as they too seek a new manager.

Having played for both sides in his career (as well as Real Madrid and Real Sociedad), the German giants, while being tipped to move for the Spaniard, have recently played down their chances of his appointment, taking a very modest approach to the speculation.

However, Sky Deutschland is adamant that, if the 42-year-old does leave the BayArena, it will only be for Bayern Munich, with a move to Liverpool now being ruled out.

They claim Bayern are ‘optimistic’ about landing Alonso and that it is highly ‘likely’ he would pick the Allianz Arena over Anfield for his next destination.

Bayern’s honorary president Uli Hoeness has also delivered his thoughts on their links to Alonso and and has suggested he is the ideal candidate to replace Tuchel at the club.

At a Munich Trade Fair, the 72-year-old said: “He [Alonso] has proved that he can be a coach for the big time.

“There are hardly any suitable coaches who are currently free. Rather they are coaches who are under contract somewhere and possibly have great success.

“And that makes it much more difficult because clubs like Liverpool, Real Madrid, Leverkusen and FC Bayern are working on it [securing Alonso]. It’s not so easy to tell them that Bayern is the measure of all things.”

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