Liverpool legend who was Xabi Alonso's teammate but prefers another manager

This former defender surprised everyone by revealing who he wants to be Klopp's replacement.

23/02/2024, 06:02 PM +00:00

Liverpool have their attention divided on different issues right now. On the one hand there is the sporting aspect, with four tournaments in which they are competing with concrete chances of winning the title. In fact, next Sunday they will play the final of the Carabao Cup against Chelsea, while they are also in the round of 16 of the UEFA Europa League and the FA Cup. And they are the sole leaders of the Premier League standings.

But that is not all. At the same time, the club's chiefs are working to find the right replacement for Jürgen Klopp, who announced a few weeks ago that he will step down as manager after the end of the season, as he has lost the energy and motivation needed to face a new year.

With this scenario, the favorite seems to be Xabi Alonso. He is doing a great job at Bayer Leverkusen, the surprising leaders of the Bundesliga, and that has caught the attention of several top clubs in Europe. Florentino Perez was rumored to have targeted him for Real Madrid if Carlo Ancelotti did not agree to his renewal, while also Bayern Munich are considering him to replace Thomas Tuchel.

But a Liverpool legend surprised everyone this week by claiming that the favorite is another manager. Stephen Warnock was at Anfield Road between 2004 and 2007 and was part of the team that won the Champions League in 2005. There he was a teammate of Xabi Alonso, but now he does not believe the Spanish manager will be Klopp's replacement.

What did he say?

In an interview with the Liverpool ECHO, Warnock said: "Xabi Alonso will have only come onto his radar in the past year or so and there may have been someone else in the back of his mind that they were thinking he could be the replacement for Klopp". And then he named the man he believes has the best chance of coming to Liverpool: "The manager I imagine is the leading candidate is Roberto De Zerbi, because of the way he came into the Premier League and due to his success with Brighton. He's done an incredible job and almost works within the resources that Klopp has had to work with as well. I think he would be an ideal fit for the club".