Ex-Liverpool star has Alonso concern as he tells former club to consider ‘good option’ as alternative

Ex-Liverpool man David James has raised one concern he has about Xabi Alonso and has named a manager who “should be in the mix” to replace Jurgen Klopp.

Klopp announced last month that this season will be his last as Liverpool manager as he plans to take a sabbatical once this campaign is over.

Liverpool have been linked with several potential replacements but Alonso has emerged as the standout candidate to replace Klopp in the summer. 

Alonso is still new to management but he has been working wonders at Bayer Leverkusen, who are five points clear of Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga.

Despite this, James has picked out Borussia Dortmund boss Edin Terzic as an alternative who “should be in the mix” to join Liverpool.

“I’ve already said that Edin Terzic, who I know personally, should be in the mix because of his Borussia Dortmund links, which is obviously similar to Jürgen Klopp,” James told GGRecon.

“The thing we have to understand with Liverpool is that Jurgen has shown how to handle the media in a way that doesn’t sensationalise anything. He’s so down to earth, honest and he doesn’t glorify anything, so the qualities he continues to display are qualities that a lot of other managers don’t have. I believe that Jürgen has a special skill.

“For Liverpool, finding somebody who’s good with a football team is one thing, but finding someone as skilled as Jurgen with the media is another thing.”

READ MORE: What next for Jurgen Klopp? Barcelona among five possible paths after leaving Liverpool

James has also argued that Alonso’s inexperience is a concern” as he does not have the “longevity that Klopp had before moving to Liverpool”.

“This season for Xabi Alonso has gone ridiculously well for him and he couldn’t have wished for a better position. With Bayern Munich imploding at present, it looks like he’s going to guide Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title in their history,” James added.

“He’s doing amazing things at the moment, but he’s only been a first-team manager for 18 months and he’s not got the longevity that Jurgen Klopp had before moving to Liverpool. Tactically he may be fantastic, but Liverpool may be unsure about whether he can deal with the media side of the job.

“I think that Liverpool would have had a succession plan for Jurgen, that would have started two or three years ago. As surprising as Jurgen’s announcement was for us all, I believe Liverpool would have already had something in place and whether Xabi was in that conversation from a couple of years ago is difficult to say.

“I believe Edin Terzić is a good option and I really like him as a person, but I’m really sure that Liverpool would have a list of three or four candidates. I know that Ange Postecoglou is a name that’s being mooted at the moment, but there could also be another potential replacement out there that nobody’s talking about.”