Liverpool fans previously hoped for a fairytale reunion with former midfielder Xabi Alonso when the club’s future beyond Jurgen Klopp was still uncertain.
The Merseysiders were unable to tempt the Spanish head coach away from Bayer Leverkusen, but they did manage in recruiting an appealing proposition in Arne Slot.
Even if the Bundesliga winner had expressed interest in a move to Anfield, the Dutchman would have remained a strong contender.
“No one at Liverpool doubts Alonso would have been a serious candidate if he had been willing to take the position. However, they argue that a declaration of interest from their former midfielder would have made it a one-horse battle. “Slot, they say, was firmly in their minds by that stage,” James Pearce and Oliver Kay wrote for The Athletic.
The former AZ Alkmaar manager arrives after winning the Eredivisie and KNVB Cup with Rotterdam.
There’s no bigger endorsement.
Given that many at the time saw Alonso as the peak of up-and-coming European managers, it says a lot about how highly regarded our new manager remained.
We must emphasize that this will not be Jurgen Klopp mk.2. We would not want it to be. Our beloved German tactician is, and will continue to be, one-of-a-kind; an example to follow rather than an act to emulate.
Finally, if Michael Edwards and Richard Hughes, with the assistance of our world-class data department, believe we’ve found the appropriate candidate, we’re inclined to trust them.
It is now up to us to fulfill our departed head coach’s final wish: support the incoming man in the technical area with everything we have as a fans.
