Xabi Alonso has confirmed he will remain as manager of Bayer Leverkusen next season, effectively ending Liverpool’s hopes of appointing him as Jurgen Klopp’s successor.
Leverkusen are on the brink of a first German title after the former midfielder has turned around their fortunes and guided them to a 10-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga table in a so-far unbeaten season in all competitions.
The 42-year-old, who played 210 games for Liverpool between 2004 and 2009, was viewed as a highly credible candidate to become the club’s next manager when Klopp steps down at the end of the season and had also been touted as Thomas Tuchel’s possible replacement at Bayern Munich, another of his former clubs.
However, in a press conference on Friday, Alonso confirmed his commitment to Leverkusen. “There has been a lot of speculation around my future, we have been busy and focused and I wanted the international break to reflect a bit better,” he said. “Last week was my deadline.”
“I had a very good meeting with Bayer Leverkusen, and I informed them that I will stay and continue at the club. At the moment, this is the right place for me to develop as a coach, I am a young coach.
“I’m not going to comment about Liverpool or Bayern. These are big clubs and I have strong links with them but I’m in the place where I want to be.”
Klopp was asked about Alonso’s decision during his own press conference and said: “One part I can speak about is that he’s a young manager at a club where he’s doing really well. I did pretty much the same [staying at Borussia Dortmund when first offered the chance to leave] and I never regretted it.
“The club are doing an incredible job there. Leverkusen have a good team, probably will keep their team together, I think that’s possible this year as well, it’s not all years like that. So I understand that he wants to do that.”
The developments strengthen the hands of Sporting Lisbon head coach, Ruben Amorim,, and the Brighton & Hove Albion manager, Roberto De Zerbi, who coincidentally takes his current team to Anfield on Sunday.
De Zerbi’s first game in charge of Brighton in October 2022 ended as a 3-3 draw and Klopp has never been able to get the better of the Italian across four meetings.
Klopp praises Brighton's 'really different' style
Liverpool’s new sporting director, Richard Hughes, had wanted to appoint De Zerbi as Bournemouth manager before he joined Brighton, but the move has worked out well for the 44-year-old coach as he guided the club into Europe for the first time with a seventh-placed finish last season.
“We know how difficult it is against Brighton,” Klopp said. “Roberto is doing an incredible job there. We improved over the 18-20 months since he arrived. The first game was surprising, we were their first opponents when he joined and we had no clue what to expect.
“It was impressive how quick he got the team in his way. Since then it has only gotten better. A really impressive, different way of playing football. It’s about having possession, they want it and we want it, but we need to have more. That’s the best way to defend against them.
“When they have the ball, you have to be ready to suffer. It will be super interesting, I’m really looking forward to it.”
Pressed specifically on what makes De Zerbi so special, Klopp added: “The way they play. It’s a really different way. I couldn’t coach that. It goes against my personality. But it’s a good watch, very demanding for the players — clear positioning.
“Hold your position, keep your position, pass at the right moment. He’s a top coach doing really well, super interesting to see. That makes it tricky. It’s just a different way.
“Possession-based but even more structured from a positional point of view than maybe Manchester City or whatever where they have a bit more freedom. Brighton, on their day, can beat any team. But good news: we can do that as well.”
Liverpool, level on points with leaders Arsenal who travel to third-placed City this weekend, are taking things “day by day” with Andy Robertson as Klopp indicated the left-back’s injury sustained during Scotland duty was not serious.
Darwin Nunez and Ibrahima Konate are available for Brighton’s visit while Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Diogo Jota remain on the sidelines but are due to step up their recovery from next week.