Roberto De Zerbi has publicly distanced himself from succeeding Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool whereas additionally speaking up one of many main candidates for the job.
Ever because the German introduced final week that he’d be stepping down on the finish of this season, Xabi Alonso was put in as one of many favourites to switch him, with The Athletic subsequently reporting that the Bayer Leverkusen boss is ‘an early frontrunner’ to take the reins at Anfield later this 12 months.
His Brighton counterpart has additionally been touted as a doable contender for the Reds, however the Italian insisted in an interview with Cronache Di Spogliatoio that his focus is 100% fastened on his present submit on the Amex Stadium.
Talking about Alonso’s suitability to the Liverpool supervisor’s job, De Zerbi mentioned: “He’s doing a unprecedented job. His group performs so nicely. The model is well-defined. He was already good when teaching Actual Sociedad’s second group three years in the past and he’s proving the identical in an amazing membership like Bayer Leverkusen.”
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It’s inevitable that De Zerbi would publicly play down any hypothesis over a possible exit from Brighton out of loyalty to his present employers, though one may ponder whether he’d privately like to be the subsequent Liverpool supervisor.
If he’s as true as his public phrase, although, then Alonso would certainly be a vastly well-liked option to tackle the unenviable process of succeeding Klopp at Anfield.
If he does information Leverkusen to the Bundesliga title this season earlier than then being appointed as Reds boss, it’d mark a neat symmetry with the incumbent LFC supervisor, who was the final particular person to guide a group apart from Bayern Munich to the German top-flight crown (with Borussia Dortmund in 2012).
The 42-year-old is putting a really good steadiness with Die Werkself, who’re the second-highest scorers of their league with 50 targets whereas additionally conceding the fewest, having shipped simply 14 previous to this weekend’s video games (WhoScored).
If Alonso returns to Liverpool in a managerial capability and is ready to replicate such figures past the halfway level of the season, the chances are high that he’d be doing a stellar job. If the choice on Klopp’s successor had been being made at present, he’d certainly be the overwhelming favorite to be given the keys to the Anfield kingdom.
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