Xabi Alonso, a prospective next manager of Liverpool, and inset, fresh contender Franck Haise
A well-known Sky Sports host has warned Liverpool that they risk missing out on Xabi Alonso if they don’t move swiftly and aggressively. This has reportedly prompted claims that the search for a surprise Ligue 1 coach has been accelerated.
After declaring in January that this would be his last season as Liverpool’s manager, the German is currently in the last three months of his tenure with the Reds. The 56-year-old also hopes to end his Merseyside career with his best-ever season, since the Reds are still playing in three tournaments and have already secured the Carabao Cup in the trophy case at Anfield.
But given that no team in English football history has ever accomplished a quadruple and only three have even completed a treble, winning the Premier League, FA Cup, and Europa League will undoubtedly be an incredibly difficult task.
Nevertheless, work is frantically underway behind the scenes to put Liverpool’s management team in place for the upcoming season and several years to come, while Klopp and his players focus fully on Sunday’s FA Cup quarterfinal trip to face Manchester United at Old Trafford.
First off, Michael Edwards has returned to his new position as CEO of football this week. Klopp has also praised the move.
His first task will be to finalize the appointment of a new sporting director, who is most likely to be Richard Hughes of Bournemouth.
Liverpool is being warned again about Xabi Alonso.
The minor issue of selecting a new manager to take over for Klopp at the end of the season also needs to be addressed. Their attention has been fixed on Alonso, the former star who is doing well in his first senior management position at Bayer Leverkusen.
Leading the Bundesliga and in a strong position to break Bayern Munich’s 11-year grasp on the title, Alonso and company are aiming for the club’s first league triumph in its 120-year existence. A tremendous accomplishment if they succeed.
Though TEAMtalk has learned that Alonso, 42, has been given a three-year contract at Anfield if he wants it, rumors suggest he is not in a rush to make a decision about his future. As a result, there are concerns that he may choose to stay at the BayArena.
They are not alone in their pursuit of the Spaniard, though, as Bayern Munich is also chasing the Bayer coach in an attempt to find a replacement for Thomas Tuchel.
Dharmesh Sheth, a commentator on Sky Sports, has therefore cautioned the Reds that they must move swiftly and forcefully to get Alonso and make him an offer that is just too good to refuse.
Sheth stated in an interview with Givemesport that “it’s going to be very, very interesting who comes in.” They are discussing Xabi Alonso, and if he is to be the guy they want, they will need to act swiftly once more. They discovered that, similar to their move for Michael Edwards, he was in contact with rival clubs.
We are aware that Xabi Alonso and Bayern Munich are in discussions over Alonso managing the team. There too, at Liverpool, the summer will be very fascinating.
Michael Edwards, the upcoming manager of Liverpool, sees a Ligue 1 coach as a backup.
Edwards has been searching Europe for possible successors, fearing they would lose out on Alonso or that he might choose to stay with Leverkusen.
Furthermore, despite rumors that players like Roberto De Zerbi, Julian Nagelsmann, and Ruben Amorim may be considered, each of them has a number of obstacles to overcome, not the least of which being sizable exit clauses after De Zerbi and particularly Amorim.
Although Liverpool might be willing to pay that much for the right candidate, there have been rumors in the last few days that Franck Haise, the architect behind Lens, is emerging as a surprise pick from France.
Though not much is known about the 52-year-old coach on this side of the Channel, he is highly recognized among Ligue 1 managers for his outstanding work at Lens.
Having led them to the Champions League from the lower divisions of Ligue 1 and, following their second-place performance, was really named French Football’s Manager of the Year in 2022–2023.
Jonathan Johnson, a French football expert, stated earlier this week in an interview with CaughtOffside that Edwards is a big fan of his work.
“I understand that there has been interest in him going back a couple of years now, not just from Liverpool but from other clubs across Europe.”
The enormous contribution he has made to Lens being one of the top teams in France once more cannot be understated, in my opinion.
Lens has a sizable fan base, great cultural significance to French football, and many similarities to Borussia Dortmund, so it makes sense that he’s being linked to be the next Jurgen Klopp.
Was Edwards able to persuade Franck Haise?
Johnson went on, “But, in terms of his on-field accomplishments, he hasn’t spent nearly as much time with Lens as Klopp did with Dortmund, so he can’t brag of having won any trophies or made it to the European run-in.
“But Haise made sure Lens qualified for the Champions League again this year, having trailed champions PSG by only one point the previous year. Under the 52-year-old, Lens has never placed lower than seventh.
“He has done an incredible job considering that he has accomplished all of this with a fraction of PSG’s budget; they are statistically the most successful team in France in 2024.”
Even though his poor command of English could be a liability, it’s thought Edwards is now researching the Lens coach and compiling material on him in advance of a prospective raid.
It remains to be seen if Edwards makes an attempt to sign him, but he is now supposedly very much in the running to take over as Reds manager should the Alonso approach fall through.
With Lens, Haise had an amazing 48.43% win percentage, winning 77 of his 159 games in management.
In comparison, Alonso has won 49 of 74 games and is still undefeated this season in all competitions. Right now, he has an extremely excellent 66.22% record.
