Gary Lineker has suggested that Xabi Alonso could take over from Arne Slot as Liverpool manager this summer, following the club's challenging 2025/26 campaign. The reigning Premier League champions suffered a 3-2 defeat to Manchester United, intensifying scrutiny on Slot's position.
Lineker's prediction
Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, Lineker told Alan Shearer and Micah Richards: "Would Slot be there next season? Eleven defeats in the Premier League, still in the Champions League positions. I wouldn't be surprised if Xabi Alonso was there next season."
Shearer responded: "I think in terms of what he did last season and winning the league, manager of the season. With the issues and the problems they've had at Liverpool this year, then yeah, I do. If it were my choice, I would have him as manager."
Alonso's background
Alonso has been linked with Liverpool since Jurgen Klopp announced his departure in January 2024. After a successful spell at Bayer Leverkusen, he replaced Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid last summer but was dismissed earlier this year.
Criticism of new signings
Micah Richards turned his attention to Liverpool's recent recruits, with Shearer nodding in agreement. Richards said: "I think where the scrutiny comes is the signings. They've not worked. Alexander Isak has been injured, Wirtz has not been at the level we all expect, Frimpong is your right winger, your right-back, it's not really working out. Milos Kerkez has been a shadow of the player who was at Bournemouth."
He added: "Liverpool are too slow, too passive, they're too easy to play against. What you normally associate Liverpool with is being aggressive, hard to beat, work-rate, especially under Klopp and they're none of those things. I'd like the manager to get a chance to turn those things around."
Injury update
Mohamed Salah, a key figure under Klopp, is set to leave Anfield at the end of the season. He missed the defeat to United due to injury but is expected to feature in the remaining three matches. Alexander Isak and Alisson were also absent. Slot said: "Alisson hasn't trained with us yet, so that makes it quite simple. We're hoping for him to be ready next week, but we have to wait and see. The same can be said about Alex - we're hoping to have him back next week."
