Liverpool lining up preferred Jurgen Klopp replacement - but it's not Xabi Alonso: report

Liverpool are looking at an array of options to replace Jurgen Klopp at the end of the season, with one name leading the discussions. 

Last Friday, Jurgen Klopp announced that he would be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season, with the German boss citing a lack of energy as his main motivation to end his time at Anfield. 

Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso quickly emerged as the obvious replacement for Klopp, considering the work he is performing at the top of the Bundesliga and his past Liverpool connections. 

However, according to Fabrizio Romano, the Liverpool hierarchy favour Roberto De Zerbi from Brighton & Hove Albion to become the next manager, snubbing the bookmakers' favourite in Xabi Alonso. 

“Roberto De Zerbi is another manager they have discussed internally as one of the preferred options. So this name for sure will be on the shortlist," Romano told GIVEMESPORT. 

“Let’s see who else is going to be on this list. Let’s see what the new director will decide in terms of who is the best manager for the new project after Jurgen Klopp.

“It’s never easy to come into a club like Liverpool and make an impact at the same level of Jurgen Klopp. They will speak internally, they will have a new director and then they will decide who is going to be the new coach.”

Since joining Brighton last September, De Zerbi has impressed Europe's biggest clubs with his style of play. The Italian manager led the Seagulls to sixth in the Premier League last term, earning them European football for the first time in the club's history, and currently has them eighth in the table.

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