SINGAPORE – As the football world digests the bombshell news of Jurgen Klopp’s departure, the debate has intensified on who should step into the German’s big shoes.
Former Liverpool star John Arne Riise believes his ex-teammate and current Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso fits the bill perfectly.
The 56-year-old Klopp stunned everyone on Jan 26 when he announced that he would be stepping down as Reds manager at the end of this campaign, adding that he was running out of energy in his ninth season at Anfield.
Riise, who is in Singapore for the announcement of the April 20-21 StarHub Football Festival, told The Straits Times on Jan 29 that Liverpool need a “hungry manager, someone who wants to improve and someone who knows the club”.
“Xabi Alonso has been a player at the club, he knows the club, he knows the fans,” added the 43-year-old Norwegian. “He knows what is expected when it comes to results.
“At Liverpool... expectations are high and you need to have a good relationship with the fans. And he has that, so my pick will be him. He is hungry, he is young and he has already proven he is a good manager.”
Riise, a former left-back, knows what it takes to succeed on Merseyside.
He spent seven seasons at Liverpool, making more than 250 appearances from 2001 to 2008, during which he won the 2005 Champions League and 2006 FA Cup with Alonso.
The Spaniard, 42, is in his first role in senior management after being appointed as Leverkusen coach in October 2022.
He took over a team who were mired in the relegation zone and led them to a sixth-placed finish. This season, his Leverkusen side have set the Bundesliga alight. They are perched atop the table, two points above defending champions Bayern Munich, after staying unbeaten in 19 matches.
Alonso, who has played down speculation linking him to the Anfield hot seat, has also earned admirers for his work, with his team playing an exciting, attacking brand of football.
Riise is not surprised by his former teammate’s rise, adding that it was apparent from their days in the locker room that Alonso had an affinity with the tactical board.
“You could see it in the way he plays football, his character, how he trains. He is tactically smart, he is always looking around, he’s always taking in everything people said, he reads the game very well and he can change a play during a game.
“And that’s how you have to be as a manager,” said Riise.
Alonso has also honed his tactical acumen, having played under serial winners Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti (both Real Madrid) and Pep Guardiola (Bayern Munich), which puts him in good stead for a top coaching appointment, added Riise.
Riise himself had also coached. He was most recently in charge of top-tier Norwegian women’s side Avaldsnes IL from 2021 to 2023.
Fans in Singapore may get a chance to witness Riise’s ferocious left-footed rockets, when he laces up his boots for an exhibition match in the StarHub Football Festival at Our Tampines Hub on April 21.
He will be starring for the EPL legends as they take on the Singapore legends, led by former Lions forward Aleksandar Duric.
Riise is expected to line up alongside former Manchester United stars Dwight Yorke and Teddy Sheringham and former Reds such as Glen Johnson, Patrik Berger and Vladimir Smicer.
Tickets for the match, priced from $30 to $60, will be available exclusively on Movetix from Jan 30 to Feb 5 before also being made available on Sistic.
Organised by World Football Legends in collaboration with StarHub, the two-day festival will kick off with coaching sessions for children and other activities such as workshops and meet-and-greet sessions with the legends.
