Liverpool legend and Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso had emerged as an ambitious target for Tottenham Hotspur.
Sign up to our LondonWorld Today newsletter
Sign up
Thank you for signing up!
Did you know with an ad-lite subscription to LondonWorld, you get 70% fewer ads while viewing the news that matters to you.
Submitting...
Tottenham Hotspur are set to fail in any attempt to make Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso their next manager with the Liverpool legend expected to join Trent Alexander-Arnold at Real Madrid this summer.
Alexander-Arnold has confirmed that he will leave Anfield at the end of the season as a free agent, ending a 20 year stay with Liverpool. It is expected that the versatile full-back will join Spanish giants Real Madrid with transfer guru Fabrizio Romano already giving that move the ‘here we go’ treatment on social media.
The Galacticos are still racing Barcelona for the league title but it’s expected to be a summer of change at the club, with Carlo Ancelotti set to leave the Bernabeu following the side’s defeat in the Champions League quarter final at the hands of Arsenal.
Ange Postecoglou expected to leave Tottenham Hotspur
Spurs are also preparing for a managerial change this summer with Ange Postecoglou to make way for a new face. The Aussie still has another two years left on his deal in north London but, after an underwhelming Premier League season, it was widely reported at the end of April that he would move on - no matter the outcome of the Europa League campaign.
Several candidates have been linked with taking over at Tottenham Hotspur. AFC Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola and Fulham manager Marco Silva emerged as two frontrunners but the club could also look on the continent.
GiveMeSport had claimed that Spurs board members could look to bring Liverpool legend and Bayer Leverkusen boss Alonso to London. The outlet reported that internal discussions over a possible approach to Alonso, who won the Bundesliga last year, had begun but that it was accepted it would be an ambitious move.
Xabi Alonso not realistic Spurs target as Real Madrid beckons
Over the weekend, Romano confirmed that Alonso would not be moving to the Premier League and that Real Madrid is set to become his destination. He told the Here We Go Podcast: “Xabi Alonso remains the favourite (to replace Ancelotti). Obviously, Real Madrid fans need to be patient with this one, because every day they probably expect a breakthrough in talks.
“But, what I want to communicate is that there will be no problem between Xabi Alonso and Real Madrid on the contract, on the agreement. Xabi Alonso wants to go to Real Madrid, and Real Madrid see Xabi Alonso as the perfect candidate for the job.
“Then, there is an exit process. This is for Ancelotti in Brazil, but it’s also for Real Madrid. So, it’s on the club’s side to prepare the final chapters of this story, to fight for La Liga till the end, and then to enter into the conversations with Xabi Alonso.
“But, my understanding is that if Real Madrid will proceed, as we expect, for Xabi as new coach, there will be no problem with Xabi Alonso, with his agent, on the contract and all the details, because Xabi wants the job.”
Alonso won La Liga and the Champions League while playing at Real Madrid and could manage Liverpool star Alexander-Arnold at the Bernabeu. The former midfielder was in the Liverpool first team when Alexander-Arnold was taking his first steps in the academy.
In other news, Tottenham and Liverpool £51m transfer target 'sickened' by current club's form.