Arne Slot left sweating over his Liverpool job after announcement made
Liverpool will face a decision at the end of this season on the future of Arne Slot, despite a slight recovery in recent weeks.
Slot remains under pressure at Liverpool, but the Reds have not lost a game since the end of November after what had been a horrific run of form.
The Premier League Champions lost nine of 12 games between September and November, and the Dutchman appeared to be on the brink of the sack.
Liverpool drew 0-0 with Arsenal on Thursday and beat Barnsley 4-1 in the FA Cup on Monday, in what has been a strong week of form.
In a mad two weeks, Ruben Amorim was sacked by Manchester United, and Enzo Maresca left Chelsea, surely leaving Slot on the edge of his seat.
Xabi Alonso announcement sends bookies into frenzy
Xabi Alonso was already the favourite for the Liverpool job, after he had been approached by the Reds in 2024.
The Spaniard graced Anfield with his presence as a player, and decision-makers hoped he would return to take over from Jurgen Klopp.
But the 44-year-old was keen to see out his time at Bayer Leverkusen, where he had led his side to an unbeaten Bundesliga season.
While Liverpool needed a manager immediately and settled on Slot, Real Madrid were able to wait a year and approach Alonso in 2025.
But after just over six months, the Spaniard’s time at the Bernabeu has come to an end, Real Madrid confirmed on Monday.
A statement announced that Los Blancos came to a mutual agreement with the manager, and thanked him for his time.
In light of the news, Alonso’s odds of taking over at Liverpool have been slashed to 1/1 by one major bookmaker, followed by Luis Enrique (2/1) and Oliver Glasner (5/1).
What went wrong for Alonso at Real Madrid?
On paper, Alonso’s record at Real Madrid is not at all bad. The Spaniard won 24 of the 34 matches he was in charge for, losing only six.
But those losses came at key times. His side were smashed by PSG 4-0 at the Club World Cup, battered by Atletico Madrid 5-2 in September, and lost to both Liverpool and Manchester City in the Champions League.
Frustrations came to the fore when Real Madrid were beaten 3-2 by Barcelona in the Supercopa de Espana final on Sunday.
Alonso attempted to get his players to clap their opponents, but a Kylian Mbappe-led coup showed a clear disconnect between manager and squad.
The former Liverpool man has been immediately replaced by Alvaro Arbeloa, who also spent time with the Reds.