Xabi Alonso, former Liverpool player and Bayer Leverkusen coach is the favorite to take over as Anfield’s next manager.
Football manager Xabi Alonso of Bayer Leverkusen has been hailed by Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp as the “standout” among a new generation of coaches.
Since Klopp will be leaving the team after the season, Alonso is the clear favorite to take over at Anfield.
After defeating Bayern Munich 3-0 the previous weekend, the 42-year-old’s Bayer Leverkusen squad leads the Bundesliga by five points.
In the lead-up to Liverpool’s match against Brentford on Saturday, Klopp praised Xabi’s work.
“The football he is playing, the teams he sets up, the transfers he did, it is exceptional.”
Between 2004 and 2009, midfielder Alonso played for Liverpool for five seasons, totaling 210 matches. Before going to Real Madrid and eventually Bayern, he won the FA Cup, Uefa Super Cup, and Community Shield in 2005 while scoring as Liverpool defeated AC Milan to win the Champions League.
Since taking over at Leverkusen in 2022, Alonso has managed a consistent increase in performance. This season, they have not lost in any competition. In addition to their incredible Bundesliga success, they have advanced to the DFB Pokal semifinals and the Europa League’s round of sixteen.
Due to Leverkusen’s performance, the Spaniard has also been connected to the manager positions at Real Madrid and Bayern.
“How quick his team is that well tuned, for the time it’s taken, he’s put his proper stamp on it,” said Klopp. “The next generation is arrived, and Xabi stands out in that regard, in my opinion.
“He came from a coaching family and was a former world-class player, which helps a little bit. As a player, he was almost like a coach already.
Eight weeks ago, if you had asked me about Xabi Alonso, I would have said, ‘Oh my God!’ Always what I stated.
“Carlo Ancelotti, Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola, and maybe me—the ‘dinosaurs,’ if you will—we will not [manage] for the next 20 years. Alright, Mourinho might pull it off, but not the others.”
Having stated he no longer has the energy for the position, Klopp, 56, is scheduled to conclude his nine-year tenure as Liverpool’s manager. In addition to Alonso, the Reds have been connected to German national team manager Julian Nagelsmann and Brighton coach Roberto De Zerbi.