Alonso likely to stay at Leverkusen, says Hoeness
Reported Liverpool managerial target Xabi Alonso is unlikely to jump ship from Bundesliga leader Bayer Leverkusen, according to Bayern Munich honorary president Uli Hoeness.
The 42-year-old, who lifted the UEFA Champions League trophy in 2005 during his debut season with the Reds, has been a widely touted as a likely replacement for Jurgen Klopp, who in January announced he will stand down at the end of the season after eight-and-a-half decorated years at Anfield.
Bayern is thought to be one of the other clubs courting the Spaniard’s services, but Hoeness was highly pessimistic about anyone’s chances of luring Alonso away from Leverkusen.
He told Das Erste: “We’ll have to see if we can do it this year.
“It will be difficult, if not probably impossible. [Alonso] is more inclined to stay at Bayer Leverkusen in view of its current successes, because he would not want to leave it behind.
“Let’s say if he had two or three more years of success, it would probably be easier to bring him out of there.”
Alonso’s men are on course to secure the first Bundesliga title in the club’s history, sitting 10 points clear of Bayern Munich in second.
In February, their 2-1 victory over Mainz to make it 33 games unbeaten broke the German record for consecutive competitive matches without a loss, surpassing Hansi Flick’s Bayern Munich team of 2020 and 2021.
Leverkusen has since extended that run to 38 fixtures, most recently with a 3-2 victory over Freiburg before the international break.
It hosts Hoffenheim as the Bundesliga returns to action this weekend.
