SUMMARY
- Jurgen Klopp is leaving Liverpool in the summer of 2024.
- Two former players of Liverpool can take the job in the coming summer
Jurgen Klopp dropped a bombshell on Liverpool fans by announcing that he will leave the Merseyside club at the end of the season. The shocking news has started the ball rolling on the speculation on the next manager of the Premier League club.
Among the potential replacements, two former players of Liverpool can take the job in the coming summer. Klopp revealed in his announcement that he is running out of energy. It is up to the American owners of the English club to replace the outgoing manager with a suitable replacement.
Xabi Alonso leads the race to replace Jurgen Klopp
Among the early favorites, Xabi Alonso currently leads the race to replace Klopp. The former Liverpool midfielder has been sensational with Bayer Leverkusen since his appointment in October 2022. In the current season, he leads the Bundesliga table ahead of the defending champions, Bayern Munich. Leverkusen has a four-point lead over the Munich side after 18 games.
🚨🔴 Xabi Alonso on Liverpool job: “Speculation is normal, my focus is here on Bayer Leverkusen”.
“I am very happy at Leverkusen with my players at the moment”.
“Big surprise in Liverpool, of course — for what Jürgen did in Liverpool I have great respect and admiration”. pic.twitter.com/dqVRRdZsT5
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 26, 2024
Alonso might be persuaded to join the Reds in the summer if he wins the Bundesliga with Leverkusen. The Spanish manager was previously linked with Real Madrid but Carlo Ancelotti recently renewed with the Spanish side. This opens the door for Alonso who might be the best person to follow up the legendary, Jurgen Klopp.
Steven Gerrard and others who could replace Jurgen Klopp
Xabi Alonso to Liverpool isn’t a done deal for the summer. Many factors might push the Spanish manager away from Liverpool in the coming summer. Among the other candidates, Pepijn “Pep” Lijnders also leads the race for some bookies to replace Klopp in the summer. The Dutch manager has been the assistant manager of Liverpool since 2015.
Steven Gerrard is another name that is being thrown around for this job. As per reports, he is the third favorite to replace Klopp. The former Liverpool captain is currently with Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia since the summer of 2023. Liverpool might easily persuade him away in the coming summer.
🗣️ Roberto De Zerbi: “I love Klopp. I love Jürgen Klopp and he can do what he wants. I have big respect for him and consider him one of the best coaches in the world.
I like his behaviour and when he says something, I agree with 99% of what he says.” pic.twitter.com/FNxzF1dYI2
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) January 26, 2024
Roberto De Zerbi, the current Brighton manager another manager who is speculated to replace Klopp in the summer. The Italian manager has been impressive with the English club by improving the squad after taking over Graham Potter. The Italian can make the big jump in the summer to replace another big name in an English club. However, replacing Klopp will be the biggest challenge for the Brighton manager in his career.
Julian Nagelsmann completes the list as the final candidate who is strongly linked with Liverpool. The former Bayern Munich manager is currently preparing for Euro 2024 with the national side of Germany. He was appointed by Germany back in September 2023. He might join the English club in the summer if the upcoming Euro tournament doesn’t go as per his plans.
Replacing Jurgen Klopp is a big challenge for Liverpool and among these five candidates there are a few candidates that might replicate the heavy metal style of Klopp. The upcoming months will be crucial for the English club.