An ideal future Jürgen Klopp successor could be emerging for Liverpool at the moment, and a return to Anfield may be on the cards at some point in the future.
Most Liverpool fans dread the day that Jürgen Klopp will leave the club. Having left an indelible legacy and connected with the supporters like no other, Klopp will go down in history as one of the best managers ever to wear the Liverbird on his chest in the Anfield dugout.
Thankfully, with his contract until 2026, the Reds hopefully have many years of success to look forward to under his wings, even if right now things are not all sunshine and rainbows.
But it’s never too early to talk about Klopp’s potential successor when the time comes, and over the last few months, a very intriguing candidate has emerged who Liverpool should be keeping a close eye on, especially since he has a close affinity with the club.
As a player, Xabi Alonso was a cult favorite at Anfield. He had style and poise on the ball and played with the kind of elegance that made him look like a master on the pitch. Intelligent and dynamic, Alonso could dictate any midfield in world football in his prime.
Unlike some of his other peers of the era like Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard, Alonso hasn’t been thrust into a senior managerial role straight away. Initially, he started his career in management at Real Madrid’s youth set-up before moving to his boyhood club Real Sociedad managing their ‘B’ side for three years to hone his craft and then moving on to Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga.
Alonso started his first game with a bang winning 4-0, but then went on a run of six games in all competitions without a win including a 5-1 drubbing against Eintracht Frankfurt and a 3-0 defeat to Porto in his second and third game in charge of Leverkusen.
It was always going to take him time to settle though, and Alonso has improved significantly. He is currently unbeaten in his last five games and has won his last four with Leverkusen in convincing fashion. The club may only sit in ninth place but under Alonso, they have collected 16 points in eight games, which is significantly better than the mere five points the club had picked up in the previous eight games in the league.
At this current form, Alonso could easily secure another European qualification with his new system finally seeming to bear the fruits.
The Spaniard uses a 3-5-2 or 3-4-3 formation with inverted wingers and a false number nine hovering almost as an attacking midfielder. Alonso places a special emphasis on the wing-backs who stretch out the width for Leverkusen in offensive transitions.
It’s an interesting system that offers a lot of fluidity for Alonso in possession, but it also incorporates some elements used under Klopp at Liverpool. For example, Alonso wants his side to implement gegenpressing, and Leverkusen does tend to push up pretty high when they are not in possession of the ball.
While in possession, just like Klopp, Alonso utilizes his full-backs on the wings, meanwhile his wingers are deployed more as forwards.
The influence of having worked with some of the greatest minds in football of his generation is obvious. Alonso was managed by Rafael Benitez, Pep Guardiola, Carlo Ancelotti and José Mourinho, which will have given him an incredible insight into the game and coaching in general.
Using a fairly youthful squad, Alonso has brought the best out of many of Leverkusen’s underperforming youngsters. Jeremie Frimpong has thrived under his reign, while Czech international Adam Hložek has five goal contributions in his last six Bundesliga games under Alonso.
Making the adjustment to such a big club and with such big expectations is never easy. When Alonso took over, Leverkusen had lost five of its first eight games of the season, but he has lifted that out of that slump and should be given credit not for just that but also for implementing a unique and distinctive style so quickly.
Alonso has shown promise during his early days as a manager, and at this rate, if he continues to impress, Liverpool should seriously consider him as a potential candidate to replace Klopp in the future.
source: https://www.liverpool.com/
