Liverpool head coach Arne Slot may find his role under threat in the near future according to reports.placeholder image
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot may find his role under threat in the near future according to reports. | Getty Images
Liverpool have reportedly identified a top candidate if Arne Slot were to depart Anfield
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has credit in the bank after winning the Premier League title in his first season at the club, but a challenging second season on Merseyside has meant that questions have begun to be asked of the Reds boss.
The champions sit fourth in the Premier League table after an eleven-match unbeaten run calmed talks of ‘crisis’ in the autumn, but they remain, nevertheless, far off the pace at the top of the table with a Champions League spot now the realistic aim.
The improved form of Florian Wirtz in recent weeks has been met with optimism, though a long-term injury to Alexander Isak and then more recently to Conor Bradley against Arsenal have reflected the issues which Slot is still set to face this term. Reports suggest that Liverpool may already have identified their ideal candidate to succeed the Dutchman if he were to depart Anfield.
Xabi Alonso the ‘dream’ candidate to replace Slot - reports
Reporting states that Liverpool chiefs could appoint Alonso to replace Slot as soon as ‘this summer’, relaying claims by Spanish outlet Fichajes that the Reds are ‘closely monitoring’ Alonso’s next steps in management. Spain-based newspaper AS add that all of Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Manchester City view Alonso as the ‘ideal candidate’ to take over their respective projects next.
While none of those trio of jobs are currently available at present, the question may remain of which club blinks first in order to secure the future of Alonso. Pep Guardiola may be coming towards the end of his tenure at City, and Liverpool will be aware of this.
Former Liverpool star Alonso could return as ‘one of the best’
Alonso is believed to be ‘taking some time’ to reflect on his time at Real Madrid before deciding on his next move, but it looks set to be at one of the biggest jobs in football when his next managerial position ultimately does arrive.
If Liverpool continue to struggle in the second half of the season and face the prospect of dropping out of the Champions League places entirely, the club ownership will have a decision to make over who should lead the club forward next term.
Brazil manager and former Los Blancos icon Carlo Ancelotti called Alonso “one of the best in the world” last season as rumours of the 44-year-old being his successor at the Bernabeu grew, and Alonso is also a legend at Anfield in his own right. Part of the famous side who won on penalties in the 2005 Champions League final in Istanbul, Alonso scored the equalising goal in normal time in arguably one of the most memorable moments of his glittering career, which later took him to Madrid and Bayern Munich.
Alonso may have faced his challenges on his return to Real as head coach but he is still believed to have a very bright future in management, and it will be intriguing to see where he ends up next.
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