Ruben Amorim could be released from his Sporting contract at the end of the season if Liverpool decide to target him. Photo: Getty Images/Fabrice Coffrini
Liverpool could sign Ruben Amorim for just £12.8m after Xabi Alonso confirmed he will not succeed Jurgen Klopp.
Telegraph Sport understands clause The release clause in Amorim's contract, which could be due at the end of this season, is €15 million.
The amount agreed with Sporting will drop to €10 million (£8.5 million) in the summer of 2025 ). 39-year-old highly rated player.
Previously, Portugal said that the release amount for Amorim, who signed a new four-year contract in 2022, was significantly higher — about twice as much.
Telegraph Sport reported on Thursday that Liverpool were focusing on other candidates as Alonso was ruled ineligible.
Amorim won fans with his work in Portugal, where he completed a 19-year spell expecting a title in his first full season with Sporting, who are leading the table again this season. The English-speaking former Braga coach also won the Portuguese domestic cup three years in a row.
Liverpool already know that the other strong suitor being considered, Roberto De Zerbi, also has a release clause. with Brighton and Hove Albion. The figure was revealed to be at least £12 million — a sum similar to what Liverpool would have had to pay for Amorim, but again hardly prohibitive for the deal agreed.
Liverpool are considering other candidates and are considering a move for Julian Nagelsmann, whose current contract as Germany manager ends after Euro 2024 but is unlikely to take over at Anfield.
Fears have been allayed. Alonso's potential to replace Klopp was confirmed on Friday when he announced he would remain in charge of Bayer Leverkusen. The 42-year-old former Liverpool midfielder was considered the favorite to succeed Klopp following the German's shock decision to leave the club at the end of the season.
But Alonso said: “I had a good meeting with Bayer Leverkusen and I told them that I would stay and continue with the club. After talking for a long time about my future, I used the break to think and make a decision. This is the place for me.”
Xabi Alonso has committed his future to Bayer Leverkusen at a Friday press conference Photo: Getty Images/Jörg Schuler
Klopp suggested Alonso was one of the leading candidates to replace him but said on Friday he understood why the Spaniard had decided to stay.
Klopp said: “The young manager is doing well at the club. I did pretty much the same thing (stayed when I was first asked to leave) and have never regretted it. He's doing great there. They have a great team and they can keep it. I understand why he wants to do it.”
Bayern Munich are also interested in Alonso as they look for a successor to Thomas Tuchel, who will leave the club in the summer.
Alonso's side trail Bayern by 10 points with six games remaining, with Leverkusen on the verge of ending the German giants' 11-year stranglehold on the Bundesliga trophy.
Alonso added: «My job is at » Bayer» is not finished yet. I want to help the club, help the players develop, the advice is great… everything is great here. I'm still a young coach, but I think this is the best decision for my future. I took my time and I'm sure of it.
“I will not comment on Liverpool or Bayern. These are big clubs and I have strong connections with them, but I am where I want to be. Now is not the time to decide my future — I want to develop at Bayer Leverkusen.»
It is clear that Alonso feels he owes Leverkusen for supporting him in his first managerial position. that he wants to take them into the Champions League and also that he fears announcing his departure now could derail the campaign in which they seek their first German title.
Real Madrid will also take note of his decision to stay as they are interested in him when Carlo Ancelotti eventually leaves.
Klopp: De Zerbi is the best coach
Liverpool have appointed a new sporting director, Richard Hughes, who will take over ownership in June, and Fenway Sports Group has reunited with former athletic director Michael Edwards, who is the American Soccer club's chief executive. Ultimately, the couple will be responsible for selecting the new manager.
The club's data team is focused on coaches whose teams are willing to win the ball in high positions (like Klopp) and whose teams will match the composition of the team.
De Zerbi takes Brighton into the team. This Sunday at Anfield, where Klopp praises the Italian's style of play. “It’s difficult to play against them. They are super dominant and you can't achieve that without training. You can't just put a line on the wall and say, 'This is how we play,'» he said. «There's a lot of work behind it, a lot of convincing to the players, because he's changed a lot. . How the goalkeeper should play, how the central midfielders should start building up, how the sixes should move, how the tens should move, the wingers, everyone.”
Klopp added. : “And yes, that makes him a better coach because of the influence he had. I've met him three times (that's four) and he seems like a nice guy. That's all I know about this man, but I've seen his football team play quite often and I can say that he is a top coach.»
Свежие комментарии