Topic: LFC's next manager - chat and informed speculation

[newterp]

Plettenburg gets things wrong but he also gets many things correct. No question about that. He seems adamant that Alonso won't join Liverpool if he leaves Leverkusen. I hope he's wrong but let's wait and see. I still think Alonso will decide to remain at Leverkusen.

He probably read this thread and said I need to show them how I work with adversity next season when my team is ripped apart. 

Good advisors he has. Very good.

[cptrios]

Plettenburg gets things wrong but he also gets many things correct. No question about that. He seems adamant that Alonso won't join Liverpool if he leaves Leverkusen. I hope he's wrong but let's wait and see. I still think Alonso will decide to remain at Leverkusen.

I think that whatever real ITK info Plettenberg actually might have indicates that Xabi is staying at Leverkusen. He therefore sees it as safe to claim that he'd prefer Bayern, seeing as he can't possibly be wrong.

In other news, if I decide not to stay at my current job for the next few days, I'll be taking over the role of James Bond.

[Clint Eastwood]

Can’t help but feel that this is Bayern trying some shithouse tactic to unsettle Leverkusen. It’s not normal to be so public with a manager chase. Regardless, it’s not a good look. If I’m Xabi, their behaviour is turning me off.

I do hope we get Alonso. He’s the only one who will give me any excitement about the post Klopp era.

[Samie]

If Xabi goes to Bayern after all this Bayern PR and talknig to the media at all opportunites then he's an idiot.  They are trying to get Leverkusen to bottle it by doing this.

[Caps4444]

Whether he stays at Leverkusen or goes to Bayern is really the same thing for us, we will have another coach.
It could be a family decision, not wanting to move his family to another country, kids schools etc….
I have faith in the Liverpool board to have us the best manager in the Summer.

[Black Bull Nova]

Whether he stays at Leverkusen or goes to Bayern is really the same thing for us, we will have another coach.
It could be a family decision, not wanting to move his family to another country, kids schools etc….
I have faith in the Liverpool board to have us the best manager in the Summer.

Let's face it, Xabi and his family have been living in Germany for 10 years now (with a short break back to Spain), who knows how settled his family are with schools, friends, language etc. These things matter, especially for a good man like Xabi. It's his choice, his heart may well pull our way but he has one kid who spent 1 year in England and the 3 kids are probably fluent in Spanish and German.
I'd love him to come but if he chooses differently, that's up to him.

[abhred]

Yeah if Alonso didn't exist Amorim would not only be first choice but someone we should be very excited about... he ticks all the boxes- taken a club to beat bigger rivals and end a title drought, amazing underlying numbers etc etc .. there's a more than decent chance he's a better coach than Alonso - impossible to say - but he's a super credible choice.

Could you say more about numbers and other reasons? When Klopp leaving was first announced, you said the shortlist should only contain Alonso. Seems you've changed your mind.

[rossipersempre]

Let's face it, Xabi and his family have been living in Germany for 10 years now (with a short break back to Spain), who knows how settled his family are with schools, friends, language etc. These things matter, especially for a good man like Xabi. It's his choice, his heart may well pull our way but he has one kid who spent 1 year in England and the 3 kids are probably fluent in Spanish and German.
I'd love him to come but if he chooses differently, that's up to him.

Wrong. He's spent just 4.5 years out of the last 10 in Germany, 2014-17 in Munich when he retired from playing, and late 2022 to present in Leverkusen (some 600km away up north). A couple of years at Real Madrid's academy to earn his UEFA Pro License and then back to Sociedad before COVID. Hardly "a short break" in Spain.

His kids - used to moving - will be at an international school in nearby Cologne, with Jon about to finish his GCSE equivalents in the next couple of months, perfect timing for an important switch. As a 16-year old Liverpool fan, starting his A-levels in the city would also massively appeal in a cultural sense.

As for mouthpiece Plettenburg regurgitating that shit, just after Hoeness' "Bayern is the measure of all things" boast, well it's as transparent as it is embarrassing. They're sore losers and their arrogance knows no bounds. The perfect culture for Mourinho.

[mikey_LFC]

Moving to Bayern would seem like an odd move for him. I get he’s played for them, and it’s less of a move, though Munich and Leverkusen are hardly close, but if you can win the Bundesliga with a team that isn’t Bayern, then it’s a fair bet that you could win it with Bayern so you can only really lose when it comes to your reputation unless you win the champions league, potentially. Firstly, you’d alienate the Leverkusen fanbase and secondly, if you don’t win the league, or even just underperform at Bayern whilst winning the league, and maybe not going deep enough in the champions league, you come away with people having more doubts over your ability.

If I was working at Liverpool, and be asking Klopp to get his agent to flirt with Bayern to distract them in their chase, only to pull out once we’ve locked Alonso down.

[kj999]

If it's not Xabi then I'd like to see Pep given the job. I know he is apparently "leaving" but surely if we offered him the hot seat he'd be keen. Klopp's Paisley, so to speak. You never know.

[Garlic Red]

If it's not Xabi then I'd like to see Pep given the job. I know he is apparently "leaving" but surely if we offered him the hot seat he'd be keen. Klopp's Paisley, so to speak. You never know.

I reckon he’s got something else lined up so can’t see that happening at all now. I also reckon part of Edwards coming back is the idea it’s a fresh start from a structure perspective. Pep has obviously had involvement over recent years, quite how much we’ll never know, but my own theory is they can’t offer Pep the job and expect him to have less of a say than Jurgen did. It’s probably for the best everyone has a blank slate and Hughes is allowed to bring his own man in rather than have Pep thrust upon him who may be reluctant to let an ‘outsider’ dictate to him where things are going when he’s been here for a decade on/off.

[lgvkarlos]

If it's not Xabi then I'd like to see Pep given the job. I know he is apparently "leaving" but surely if we offered him the hot seat he'd be keen. Klopp's Paisley, so to speak. You never know.

Thought he was going to Ajax.

[redbyrdz]

Moving to Bayern would seem like an odd move for him. I get he’s played for them, and it’s less of a move, though Munich and Leverkusen are hardly close, but if you can win the Bundesliga with a team that isn’t Bayern, then it’s a fair bet that you could win it with Bayern so you can only really lose when it comes to your reputation unless you win the champions league, potentially. Firstly, you’d alienate the Leverkusen fanbase and secondly, if you don’t win the league, or even just underperform at Bayern whilst winning the league, and maybe not going deep enough in the champions league, you come away with people having more doubts over your ability.

I don't know how anyone would choose Bayern over us, dealing with that old boys network and the stupid media circus around them. But it's no doubt the same at Madrid, and Alonso's gone to both clubs as a player, so maybe he's ok with it.

[lionel_messias]

If it's not Xabi then I'd like to see Pep given the job. I know he is apparently "leaving" but surely if we offered him the hot seat he'd be keen. Klopp's Paisley, so to speak. You never know.

Pep's leaving the club. Has been said officially.
Also, has no manager profile to speak of.

He can come back in 7-10 years maybe.

[Caps4444]

Pep's leaving the club. Has been said officially.
Also, has no manager profile to speak of.

He can come back in 7-10 years maybe.

Too massive clubs to choose if he leaves this year or Real next year (if he has another good year at Leverkusen).
He will be given more time at Liverpool, the more romantic option too.
But both Bayern and Liverpool are huge clubs, so family situation will also play a part.
Things will be a lot clearer in the next 1-2 months.

[sminp]

Plettenburg was also adamant we weren't getting Gravenberch so I’m not convinced he’s someone to be trusted.

[Caps4444]

Doesn’t seem to be any serial winners around, in 2015-16, we got Klopp, United got Jose and City got Pep.

One of Xabi or Ruben would be great for us. I’ll trust the board and the process to choose the correct manager.

[Drinks Sangria]

I am FAR from an ITK and this is probably me misinterpreting what was said, but my boss is from a small town between Düsseldorf and Leverkusen. He’s a long term Leverkusen season ticket holder, and his son - now in the US on a sports scholarship for golf - was in Leverkusen’s academy in the same group as Florian Wirtz. My boss knows Wirtz’s father. He claims Wirtz’s father told him that Wirtz was staying one more season because Alonso was and then wanted to follow Xabi wherever he goes next.

Take it with a huge pinch of salt, I’m still feeling the guy out for what he’s like, but he doesn’t seem a bullshitter. What I will say is I’m still unsure if he’s painting idle chatter and wishful thinking as fact or not. I also think it’s all well and good Wirtz saying he’s staying, but Alonso probably won’t have told the team his intentions because it would prove a distraction, and if a club comes in with £100m for Wirtz, he’ll have little say in whether he’s there another year or not.

[Cesar]

It’s from today. Hopefully it’s bollocks

https://x.com/imiasanmia/status/1771221288759054741?s=46

No negotiations,  no talks and no approach, but other than that he's deffo going to Bayern?

[stoa]

Plettenburg was also adamant we weren't getting Gravenberch so I’m not convinced he’s someone to be trusted.

He also said last June that Kane was too expensive for Bayern and they were looking at getting Havertz. We all know how that ended. I have no doubt, that he has his sources, but that doesn't mean they won't be using him to get their message out. It won't matter to him whether he's getting played as long as he gets some real info that allows him to break stuff like what happened later in the Kane-deal.

[Asam]

i will wait for what Joyce/Ornstein say on the manager topic before leaping to any conclusions

[meady1981]

Never liked Alonso anyway.

[redbyrdz]

I am FAR from an ITK and this is probably me misinterpreting what was said, but my boss is from a small town between Düsseldorf and Leverkusen. He’s a long term Leverkusen season ticket holder, and his son - now in the US on a sports scholarship for golf - was in Leverkusen’s academy in the same group as Florian Wirtz. My boss knows Wirtz’s father. He claims Wirtz’s father told him that Wirtz was staying one more season because Alonso was and then wanted to follow Xabi wherever he goes next.

Take it with a huge pinch of salt, I’m still feeling the guy out for what he’s like, but he doesn’t seem a bullshitter. What I will say is I’m still unsure if he’s painting idle chatter and wishful thinking as fact or not. I also think it’s all well and good Wirtz saying he’s staying, but Alonso probably won’t have told the team his intentions because it would prove a distraction, and if a club comes in with £100m for Wirtz, he’ll have little say in whether he’s there another year or not.

Think you're right in the Alonso won't have told the team what he's going to do - if he does, he might just as well do a press conference. Also there's little linguistically between "he is staying another year, so am I", and "if he's staying another year", and as you said, wishful thinking can skew those words easily.

I can't see Alonso staying there another year, unless he really doesn't fancy the job here. We tend to keep our managers for a while, and it might be another decade until it'll become available again. I also think that even though following Klopp is hard, other conditions are quite favourable for a new manager. We have a good, young team, and though some important senior players are on the way out soon, it's not a massive rebuild. And even though expectations are high, we'll give a new manager time, both because it's the right thing to do, but also because we've had recent success, and the pressure to deliver a league title is perhaps a bit less than it was a few years ago.

[killer-heels]

Think you're right in the Alonso won't have told the team what he's going to do - if he does, he might just as well do a press conference. Also there's little linguistically between "he is staying another year, so am I", and "if he's staying another year", and as you said, wishful thinking can skew those words easily.

I can't see Alonso staying there another year, unless he really doesn't fancy the job here. We tend to keep our managers for a while, and it might be another decade until it'll become available again. I also think that even though following Klopp is hard, other conditions are quite favourable for a new manager. We have a good, young team, and though some important senior players are on the way out soon, it's not a massive rebuild. And even though expectations are high, we'll give a new manager time, both because it's the right thing to do, but also because we've had recent success, and the pressure to deliver a league title is perhaps a bit less than it was a few years ago.

Optimistic to think its a decade that the next manager vacancy at ours comes around. Good chance that provided Alonso still does well that the role could be available in 4-5 years.

[ScouserAtHeart]

Optimistic to think its a decade that the next manager vacancy at ours comes around. Good chance that provided Alonso still does well that the role could be available in 4-5 years.

Yep, we've had 8 managers in the last 32 years

[Samie]

Somethings been pointed out last couple of day but Torres has been all over our social media platforms.  It's weird as they never do that for ex players. Maybe he might be coming back as an Assistant?

[meady1981]

Yep, we've had 8 managers in the last 32 years

Bayern have had 25 in that time.

[killer-heels]

Yep, we've had 8 managers in the last 32 years

And thats if the manager does well. I very much Alonso will think if I dont take the job now that it will be another 10 years he gets that chance. He is only young himself so he will be plenty sure that the opportunity arises again possibly even very soon.

[TepidT2O]

If you’re going to talk to managers, now is the time as it’s the international break.
But everything will be out of sight.

[SamLad]

As in "all right, out of sight"?

[LovelyCushionedHeader]

Somethings been pointed out last couple of day but Torres has been all over our social media platforms.  It's weird as they never do that for ex players. Maybe he might be coming back as an Assistant?

Or it's just because he's playing the legends game for the first time?

[1892tillforever]

I mean, it's okay if it's Amorim!

[Garlicbread]

Somethings been pointed out last couple of day but Torres has been all over our social media platforms.  It's weird as they never do that for ex players. Maybe he might be coming back as an Assistant?

Or he's one of the biggest names to use for marketing ahead of the Legends game.

[**** The Pain Away.]

Is Del Bosque still alive?

[CHOPPER]

Is Del Bosque still alive?

Bonnet de douche, you plonker.

[Bread]

Somethings been pointed out last couple of day but Torres has been all over our social media platforms.  It's weird as they never do that for ex players. Maybe he might be coming back as an Assistant?

I think it's unlikely, though he is currently the manager of Atletico u19s, so maybe the next logical step for his coaching career would be to join the coaching staff of a serious senior team?

[rob1966]

Yep, we've had 8 managers in the last 32 years

We do tend to give managers time though, H&G skewed a lot of that, we had 3 managers in 6 months because of them pricks, that is unprecedented for us. Kenny wasn't a long term appt and Jurgen was well on course to do 10 years, so who's to say the new guy won't get 10 years?

[Black Bull Nova]

Wrong. He's spent just 4.5 years out of the last 10 in Germany, 2014-17 in Munich when he retired from playing, and late 2022 to present in Leverkusen (some 600km away up north). A couple of years at Real Madrid's academy to earn his UEFA Pro License and then back to Sociedad before COVID. Hardly "a short break" in Spain.

His kids - used to moving - will be at an international school in nearby Cologne, with Jon about to finish his GCSE equivalents in the next couple of months, perfect timing for an important switch. As a 16-year old Liverpool fan, starting his A-levels in the city would also massively appeal in a cultural sense.

As for mouthpiece Plettenburg regurgitating that shit, just after Hoeness' "Bayern is the measure of all things" boast, well it's as transparent as it is embarrassing. They're sore losers and their arrogance knows no bounds. The perfect culture for Mourinho.

Ah, right, thanks

[G Richards]

Alonso won’t be discussing his plans with Leverkusen players, so the Wirtz stuff doesn’t ring true for me. But even if Wirtz’s father has the impression that Alonso will stay there for another year, plans can change. Go back a month and Edwards wasn’t coming, for example. But he’s here now and the pieces are quickly falling into place behind the scenes. I think Alonso will come and it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if soundings weren’t taken early in, and a deal all but agreed in principle, awaiting the dotting of the I and crossing of the t once our structure behind the scenes was built out.

The timing of it being announced is sensitive, as both managers, ours and Leverkusen’s, have history to write.

[Samie]

'I hope for him' - Fernando Torres shares Xabi Alonso wish as Liverpool manager.