Liverpool are currently looking for a new manager ahead of Jurgen Klopp leaving Anfield at the end of the season.
Meanwhile, Manchester United are being linked with a change in the dugout in wake of another difficult season with Erik ten Hag at the helm.
Now, a manager said to be on the radar of the Red Devils appears to have emerged as a potential target for the Reds at Anfield.
The coach in question is Thiago Motta, whose stock has risen massively this season in wake of his superb form managing Bologna.
TEAMtalk reported in March that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his fellow Manchester Utd officials have internally discussed a move for the 41-year-old.
Now, transfer insider Dean Jones has claimed that Motta is an “outsider” for the Liverpool gig, with his style of management having intrigued many at Anfield and FSG.
However, Jones – writing on GiveMeSport – stressed that Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim remains the first-choice for the Reds.
With Liverpool needing a new manager and Man United apparently also looking around, we could potentially both vying for the same coaches in the coming months.
What has Dean Jones said about links between Liverpool and Thiago Motta?
“Outside of the two main candidates, he has a very interesting football philosophy that is intriguing to many at Liverpool,” said Jones. “Bologna play with a fluidity that is very rare.
“One thing that is important to Liverpool is that they have a football philosophy to follow but also that they play in a way that suits the squad and means they keep evolving.
“It’s important to stress that Motta is an outsider at this moment in time but that he is interesting to them.
“Key info on the appointment is that as we start this week, Amorim remains the top choice and sources in Portugal believe he would take the job.
“This is a difficult week to progress any deal because Sporting have two huge matches against Benfica that he needs 100 percent focus on.”
Who is Liverpool and Manchester United managerial target Thiago Motta?
Motta enjoyed a fruitful playing career, winning numerous titles – including two Champions Leagues – with the likes of Barcelona, Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain.
The Italo-Brazilian began his coaching career with PSG’s Under-19s, before obtaining the UEFA Pro Licence in September 2020 and taking the Genoa reins a month later.
Motta’s spell with the Grifone didn’t go to plan and he was sacked in December, but he did much better at Spezia, taking the reins in July 2021 helping the struggling club survive relegation in 2021/22.
The 41-year-old then became manager of Bologna in September 2022, guiding them to a ninth-placed finish that season and building the foundations for an impressive 2023/24 campaign.
The Rossoblu currently sit fourth in Serie A, five points clear of fifth-placed Roma with eight games left to play, and edging closer to Champions League qualification.
What is Thiago Motta’s style of play?
In terms of Motta’s style of play, he previously spoke about wanting to implement a ‘2-7-2’ formation (in this case, left-to-right instead of back-to-front).
Foot Italia recently published an article about ‘The resurgence of Bologna under Thiago Motta’, in which they spoke about him potentially being the next Italian supercoach.
‘Since being appointed as the gaffer within the dug-out, Motta has managed deviate from 3-5-2 formation and implement his favoured 4-2-3-1 tactical set-up,’ they wrote.
‘The Italian tactician injected creativity and vitality within the club, causing Bologna to play with a fluid and free-flow possessive style of play.
‘The Rossoblu’s capability to move the ball quickly and pin-point passes in between the channels through positive runs in-behind that suffocate the opposition’s back-line, as well as their swift transition when in defence to remain compact and press high in order to recuperate the ball within the central area of the pitch, has made Motta’s side a daring side within the league throughout the second half of the season.’
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