I wonder what he’d do at a club like Watford or Burnley? Throw a major tantrum because he can’t buy who he likes? Probably. He’s never been actually tested at a club with an average squad and limited finances. Look at the list: Barca, Bayern, Cheaty. Doesn’t like a challenge, old baldy.
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It makes for grim reading when you look at some of the names being mooted for the LFC job.
Yes Xabi Alonso looks the stand out candidate in what is in reality, a mediocre field, but we must also remember, he will bring with him, albeit unintentionally, the lurking dark/black cloud, known as Real Madrid.
While it is a bonus he appears to be so good at such an early age, the downside is if does 5 -10yrs with us, which will probably be enough for him, he would still be young enough to be enticed to sunnier climes elsewhere.
For all the stick FSG get from some, this is one appointment I definitely would not like to call.
If anyone can remember back to Paisley’s first season, he didn’t exactly pull up any trees with his team selections or playing style…
Whoever comes in, especially following Jurgen, patience will most definitely be needed from the supporters, for at least a season or three.
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I hear you about the possible cloud of Real Madrid looming to entice Alonso away at some point, should he come here. I’ve got two thoughts on that:
First, he is young enough to do it all. If he comes here, he will hopefully have a successful and lengthy stay, and at that point, nobody would begrudge him going elsewhere to write another chapter if he felt the pull.
If Alonso comes in the summer, he will have only had a short stint at Bayer Leverkusen. What would that say about his possible Liverpool tenure?
I think Xabi is on the record in talking about the Liverpool job, and saying he has to prove himself first. He’s in that phase right now, and making a great case for himself it must be said. There is a food chain in football, and even though it stinks for the likes of Leverkusen, going to Liverpool is a significant step up.
Is there a step up after Liverpool?
We could quote Jamie Carragher as proud reds and say, “Who is bigger than Liverpool?” But a more realistic assessment would say Real Madrid are bigger, and even if we are right up there globally, Real Madrid sit at the very top of the tree.
So if he goes there, I could understand it, but only after a good spell at Liverpool, not five minutes. As a basque it is not a foregone conclusion that he would even want to go there, but we can’t borrow potential future inconvenience and allow it to stop us from making the best move today.
I’ll make my second point in an exaggerated way by putting it like this:
When Roy Hodgson was manager of Liverpool, the shadow of Real Madrid was not looming over him. Why? Because he was crap here!
If Real Madrid want to try to get Alonso from Liverpool in a hypothetical future scenario, it will only be because Alonso has been successful for us.
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Thought we needed a 1-10 scale so expanded your list-
- Klopp
- Sound
- Sound with the occasional off-day
- Bit of a liability
- Head-the-ball
- Dickhead.
- El Hadji Diouf
- Mourinho
- Hitler
- Bruno Fernandes
If Alonso comes in and does 5-10 years then that will be fantastic.
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Yeah, the least of my worries right now would be if Xabi and Real wish each other after 5-10 years. Let’s get there first? First of all, if Xabi or whoever stays at Liverpool that long, hopefully that means we’re successful. I’d even be happy with 4-5 years, if they’re normally successful. Having something like Klopp for almost a decade, that’s just not every common in football these days. We don’t want to be Chelsea from the 2010’s either. But let’s say if the next manager could be here for a contract or two, we are successful, we both move onto something else… well, that’s just football. Something we might have to get used to.
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Got to agree with what is being mentioned about using Alonso for a period of time in the hope he brings some silverware…
One of my points, I obviously haven’t made clear enough, was the concern of a youngish Xabi, having bigger aspirations further down the road… as in, learning his trade and cutting his teeth at the expense of LFC…!
Not so much the playing side on the pitch, but the under-current within the structure at Anfield - possibly suffering through a young head on the shoulders making off-the-pitch football decisions, as opposed to a more experienced wise old head making the same…
Whatever tenure Alonso offers, it remains crucially important that LFC is left in a healthy state when he hands back the reins…
The last thing we need is a ‘Wrecking Ball’ appointee, whom is more likely interested in their own future ambitions, above one wanting to improve what we already have, and be content in joining the role call management legacy we can all be proud of.
Like I mentioned earlier, this appointment is not one I would be capable of making
Fixed
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This is where a strong Sporting Director is imperative for me. Someone who can discuss ways to improve when things don’t go well, when our injuries start to pile up, be there to support, and be firm. That’s Paul Mitchell IMO, but it seems the club has other ideas. A good Sporting Director should be able to offset some of the issues that maybe a younger head may have initially. I would’ve loved to have seen FSG actually appoint Cruyff or Van Gaal as our DOF when Rodgers was our manager. I doubt we would’ve seen some of the nonsense recruitment wise (signing Benteke for Rodgers, and Firmino for transfer committee, Balotelli).
I always found Balotelli to have a certain naïvity to him rather than being a wanton dickhead. Not that you would want him anywhere near your squad. Pity really, as he clearly had talent which ended up wasted due to his chaotic lifestyle.
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I think Rodgers was considered the best of what was available. From what I recall, he was definitely in a second tranche, with the then unavailable Klopp very much in a first.
I think the difficulty for us, is that I’ve come to believe what a Liverpool Manager needs, above all else, is Aura. The club, and therefore the job, has grown hugely since the club were choosing between Rodgers and Martinez.
I’m really struggling see a candidate other than Alonso who gets the blood pumping.
From Xabi’s point of view, if he has a few clubs on his wish list, and we assume they are Liverpool, Bayern and Real, the latter two of those jobs usually come up every couple of years. But the Liverpool one doesn’t. It’s nine years since we last appointed a manager. We like like to get behind our lads and give them time. If Xabi passes at this point, it might be a long while until the job comes up again.
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It has. Probably with an even greater weight in the immediate aftermath of Klopp, but I think those of us who were concerned that neither of those two guys had the weight to manage what we were even then were ultimately shown to be right.
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I’m really starting to worry that if Tuchel gets possibly the sack by Bayern now, he’ll be on FSG’s list as a possible Klopp successor. So far, Tuchel has always followed Klopp, first to Mainz and later to Dortmund. That would be an absolute nightmare tbh.
I would take a break from football in that case.
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He’s also been to Chelsea
There is literally no end to his crimes
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I genuinely don’t see how a modern day coach can dream of being appointed at Bayern. I respect Real Madrid and their unique lure, of course, I know that job is a dream for a lot of people (maybe Alonso is one of them, who knows) but Bayern job is the equivalent of fishing in a barrel with a laser-guided harpoon.
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This is the content we all come here for.
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Great analogy lived it lol
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