The chronology, you might think, is just too perfect. As the community around Liverpool Football Club digest the bombshell news of Jürgen Klopp’s departure, the emergence of Xabi Alonso as a head coach of genuine substance at the top of the European game seems just right. Like one of his inch-perfect passes as a player (and even now occasionally, unobtrusively impressing his charges in training sessions), it feels like an opportunity may be dropping right at the feet of the Premier League leaders just when they need it.
His work since arriving in north-west Germany speaks for itself. Taking over a Bayer Leverkusen team in the relegation zone in October 2022 and taking them close to Champions League qualification and to a Europa League semi-final was impressive. But the continuation of that upward trajectory this season has been mind-blowing. Eighteen games into the Bundesliga season his team remain unbeaten, top of the table having dropped only six points. They have the league’s best defensive record – a particularly notable feat given some of their chaotic displays at the back in recent years – but without being overly cautious or unattractive.
