As Liverpool look to find a replacement for Jurgen Klopp, each candidate has pros and cons. No other competitor in the world ticks all the boxes like Germany. For some, lack of experience at a big club is a disadvantage. Examples include Roberto De Zerbi and Ruben Amorim. Other candidates, such as Julian Nagelsmann, have not been successful with other major European teams (in this case Bayern Munich).
Although Xabi Alonso has more experience as a player than as a coach, the Spaniard has less experience than most players.However, when Alonso took over as Bayer Leverkusen manager midway through last season, he helped the Bundesliga escape the relegation zone and return to European competition. This year, they won the title by beating Bayern.
After less than 18 months in the German league, there is not much left to prove, the data is limited (Alonso’s form is at the top of the pack, but the stats and numbers suggest it could be a bit better, so it may not be sustainable) and was overlooked.
There was a mission that could not be accomplished. Before moving to Leverkusen, Alonso was in charge of Real Sociedad’s B team, which achieved promotion to the second tier of Spanish football. It was a team playing in the men’s competition. It was very different to managing Liverpool’s U21s, for example. Alonso performed very well there and although he was promoted at Sociedad and then relegated again, his work with young talent was impressive.
He has taken his team to the highest level and his top priority has been to ensure that Sociedad’s first team is full of top players to work with. Imanol Alguasil, 43 years old, would have become the manager of Company A if his big job had not gotten in his way. The bailiff has been in charge since 2018 and shows no signs of moving on. “Alonso joined the club early and made such an impression,” said Spanish football writer Colin Miller in December 2020.
“When you watch him play, it was always clear that he could move on to coaching because he was so intelligent and good. “Rafa Benitez, Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti are all people who have spent time at top clubs and under different styles of managers. The general consensus is that it is part of everything.
Real Sociedad make more player moves than any other club in La Liga and Alonso must take responsibility. It already does that.“He is already known for his developing players and Martin Zubimendi, who plays for Sociedad and is also a midfielder and depth player for the Spain Under-21s, is one of them. “You can see right away that Alonso’s techniques and methods are telling the players what to do.”
