12 February 2024 , 09:49
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Liverpool may have run into a problem during the early stages of their search for the perfect candidate to replace Jurgen Klopp.
Xabi Alonso quickly emerged as the prime target, but has distanced himself from the job while he is busy leading Bayer Leverkusen’s title challenge in the Bundesliga. Alonso is in his maiden first-team coaching role and only arrived at Leverkusen in October 2022, yet is already turning heads, with his side five points clear of Bayern Munich following their thumping 3-0 win over Thomas Tuchel’s team on the weekend.
He has dismissed speculation by insisting he is very happy where he is, while his sporting director Simon Rolfes is extremely confident he will stay beyond the summer. "One [reason] is the contract,” he said. “The other thing is how comfortable he feels, the family, himself and that he knows what he has in the club. He also has a very good team, we will have a very good perspective next year and there's no change in the team.
"We will definitely have a top team available next year. These are all points that – in addition to contracts – coaches like Xabi, but also players who [attract] interest, often stay with us." If Alonso does win the Bundesliga, as is currently looking likely, he may well want to stay put and see out his contract until June 2026.
In that eventuality, Liverpool will need to find someone else, so Mirror Football have taken a look at five alternatives.
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Pep Lijnders
One option offers continuity from Klopp. Dutchman Lijnders joined Liverpool as a coach in 2014, and although he briefly left in 2018 to manage NEC in his homeland, he quickly returned. The 41-year-old has been Klopp’s right-hand man throughout his tenure and earned some huge praise from the man himself.
“The most influential guy in the last years definitely in this club was Pep Lijnders,” Klopp said recently. “The job he did is absolutely exceptional. The inspiration he is for me is absolutely exceptional.”
Pep Lijnders could step up from assistant to replace Jurgen Klopp (AFP via Getty Images)The only problem is that, like Klopp, Lijnders has announced that he is leaving. “It’s not easy leaving such a club,” Lijnders explained. “But in life I feel always you have to do the right thing and the right thing means that in the summer we said we continue and we go with all we have, we make it ‘the Last Dance’, we make it like a proper ending.” Lijnders is leaving to find a managerial role elsewhere. But those ambitions could feasibly be fulfilled at Liverpool, were the club to offer him the job.
Roberto De Zerbi
Brighton would have something to say about De Zerbi leaving for Merseyside, but it is unlikely they would be able to stop him leaving if Liverpool came calling. The Italian is an ambitious man and would surely be tempted by the step up.
De Zerbi has some of the same personality traits as Klopp – his boundless enthusiasm, will to win and passion for the game – and would therefore make a good replacement. However, his form with Brighton has fluctuated this season, while his sometimes erratic squad rotation is another potential worry.
“I am very sad, we are losing one of the best coaches in the world,” he said of Klopp last month. “His personality, I like him because of his energy and character. If he changes leagues it is not a good thing for the Premier League.”
Ruben Amorim
Ruben Amorim has been linked with the Barcelona job (Pedro Loureiro/Getty Images)The Sporting Lisbon coach is a wanted man, with Spanish media reporting that he is on Barcelona ’s shortlist to replace the outgoing Xavi Hernandez in the summer. Amorim reportedly has a €30million (£25m) release clause such is the interest in hiring him – but that is unlikely to put off clubs of Liverpool and Barcelona’s stature.
The 39-year-old has been with Sporting since March 2020 and has a very impressive record, winning 134 of his 192 games in charge so far. He is very highly rated in Portugal, having led Sporting to their first Liga Portugal title in 19 years in just his first full season, going on a 32-match unbeaten streak in the process.
He is considered a student of the game, a tactical innovator, and as a former player he emphasises with his players. Amorim is sure to land a big job outside of Portugal soon – it just depends if Liverpool get there before others.
Graham Potter
Graham Potter has been out of work since being sacked by Chelsea in April (Darren Walsh/Getty Images)It wasn’t long ago that Potter was the flavour of the month in the Premier League due to his work with Brighton. The English coach was head-hunted by Chelsea, who paid £21.5m to hire him and his coaching staff back in September 2022.
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Things didn’t work out at Chelsea, whose expectations and lack of patience gave him little chance to succeed. But he continues to be linked with a return to management and, given the right job, there is reason to believe he can be successful again.
However, one of Potter’s biggest issues at Chelsea was dealing with egos and coping with all the baggage that comes along with a big club. Whether he has the force of personality to step into Klopp’s shoes is a major factor Liverpool’s hierarchy need to consider.
Zinedine Zidane
Zidane has been linked with lots of jobs since resigning for the second time as Real Madrid manager in May 2021. He has reportedly rejected approaches from the United States and Brazil and has been waiting for the right role.
He appears an outside choice for Liverpool, but he is undeniably a winner, having won two La Liga trophies and three Champions League titles with Real. His record of 174 wins from 263 games as the club’s manager is elite – but the question is, can he replicate it at a different club? Liverpool will do their homework and consider whether he is a good fit.
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