By Daniel Orme
Liverpool have shortlisted moves for Ruben Amorim and Julian Nagelsmann should they be beaten by Bayern Munich in the race for Xabi Alonso.
The Reds are currently on the hunt for Jurgen Klopp's long-term successor following his bombshell announcement last month. Former midfielder Alonso is among the prime candidates after his impressive work at Bayer Leverkusen.
However, a move for the Spaniard is far from straightforward. Bayern Munich are also interested as they attempt to find a replacement for Thomas Tuchel.
Leverkusen have also laid out their intentions to keep Alonso beyond the end of the season. Should a move falter, Liverpool already have two alternatives in mind.
According to The Telegraph, they are interested in former Bayern boss Nagelsmann - who is currently in charge of the German national team - and Sporting Lisbon’s Amorim. The former is still considered a talented coach despite his short stint at the Allianz Arena.
Nagelsmann’s contract with Germany runs until the end of this summer’s Euros so Liverpool could be waiting for some time to officially appoint him. Asked about his future recently, he said: “I haven’t thought about it yet.
“Since my contract ends after the Euros, I would say, ‘as it stands now, no.’ I’ve said it since the beginning of my tenure The Euros is currently the focus.
“Then we’ll see if I’m still the coach. If so, we’ll prepare very well and try to get the most out of it and win the group. We want to play a good Euros. Then we’ll see what happens next.”
Elsewhere, Amorim, 39, is considered another of Europe’s brightest coaches. The former Braga head coach has won three Portuguese cups and the 2020/21 league title.
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He has two-and-a-half years left on his contract. Amorim has been previously keen to silence any exit talk having also been linked with a move to Manchester United in the past.
Speaking earlier this season, he said: "This year I’m not going to go back to the same conversation as last year. I’m not going to make any kind of comment on these situations. We don’t know the future, it depends on the results.
"Regarding the future, I have an idea for the end of the season but I won’t say it now. But the results and the context take us to something different. I don’t want to be commenting on these things. I have not been contacted by Manchester United."
Away from Amorim and Nagelsmann, Liverpool have been linked with a host of managers. Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi and Brentford’s Thomas Frank have also been mentioned as potential Klopp replacements.
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