Xabi Alonso ‘will go to Bayern not Liverpool’ as talks opened after ‘positive signal’
Xabi Alonso ‘will go to Bayern and not Liverpool’ if he moves from Bayer Leverkusen this summer, and has given a ‘positive signal’ to the Bundesliga giants.
Both of Alonso’s former clubs want him to replace their current managers at the end of the season, with Thomas Tuchel and Bayern opting to part ways, while Jurgen Klopp announced his shock departure at the end of January.
Alonso is currently focused on his work as manager of Bayer Leverkusen, with whom he could claim an historic treble this season.
Asked recently about rumours linking him with a move away, Alonso said: “I have nothing new to say about that. I wanted to say that in advance. Right now I’m the coach here, that’s for sure. For the future I have nothing new to say, we’ll see.”
Both Liverpool and Bayern could be disappointed, with reports claiming Alonso is at least as likely to stay with Leverkusen beyond the summer as he is to leave, possibly with a move to Real Madrid in 2025 in mind.
But Sky Sports Germany claimed on Monday that Bayern have now ‘opened discussions’ with Alonso over replacing Tuchel this summer.
He will cost them between €15m and €25m to lure away from Leverkusen, as his fixed exit clause of €15m doesn’t kick in until the summer of 2025.
Sky Germany reporter Florian Plettenburg says that while Alonso could stay at Leverkusen, if he is to move, he will be staying in Germany, before explaining the Spaniard’s reservations over joining Liverpool.
He said: “They have the information that, if he changes, he will go to Bayern and not Liverpool. Alonso says that Liverpool and the [Jurgen] Klopp legacy are a difficult number. You could lose more than win.”
Former Real Madrid manager Bernd Schuster has warned Alonso against leaving Leverkusen this summer.
“Xabi’s situation reminds me of a similar situation I was in a few years ago,” Schuster told Sport Bild.
“Back then, I coached my team Getafe into the European Cup and then went to Real Madrid. Afterwards I thought to myself that I would have liked to have played with Getafe as a smaller club in the European Cup (Champions League).
“This was the first time in Europe for this club in its history and would therefore have been a very nice story. So, it’s hard to decide.
“I would understand Xabi in every decision he makes. But what I can say for sure is that sometimes you have to be careful not to want everything too quickly.
“As a young coach you still have a lot to learn. And if, like Xabi, you already have your own team that he has strongly brought together and developed, it is also a really interesting task to go one step further with this team.”
READ MORE: Five reasons why Xabi Alonso should choose Bayern Munich over Liverpool
