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| Head coach Xabi Alonso of Bayer 04 Leverkusen looks on after the Bundesliga match between Sport-Club Freiburg and Bayer 04 Leverkusen at Europa-Park Stadion on March 17, 2024 in Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany. |
Bayern Munich chief Uli Hoeness has claimed the German giants, Liverpool and Real Madrid all want to appoint Xabi Alonso as their next manager.
Alonso, 42, enjoyed a glittering playing career for the likes of Real Sociedad, Liverpool, Real and Bayern, while he also won 114 caps for Spain.
After spending three years coaching Real Sociedad's B team, he took over at Bayer Leverkusen in October 2022 and has won 50 of his 75 games in charge.
However, this season he has taken Leverkusen to new levels as they sit top of the Bundesliga where they are 10 points clear of Bayern, with the Black and Reds hoping to end their rivals monopoly on the German top flight after winning it for 11 consecutive campaigns.
Across 38 games in all competitions Leverkusen remain unbeaten, with Alonso's side still also in the German Cup and Europa League which has led to the Spaniard becoming a wanted man across Europe.
Bayern are searching for a new manager after they announced Thomas Tuchel will leave in the summer following a difficult campaign, while Liverpool are also on the lookout for a new boss with Jurgen Klopp set to end his nine-year spell at Anfield.
Both clubs are eyeing-up their former midfield lynchpin, with reports from Sky Germany claiming Alonso has already held positive early talks with Bayern.
And Hoeness, who is an honorary president at Bayern, claimed his side and Liverpool are desperate for Alonso to join, and also insisted another of his former clubs Real are 'working' on a deal too.
'He's [Alonso's] proven that he can be a coach for the big time,' Hoeness told German news outlet Ran Sport.
'Clubs like Liverpool, Real Madrid, Leverkusen and FC Bayern are working on it.'
Alonso's links to Real come despite Carlo Ancelotti penning a new deal until the summer of 2026 back in December.
Whatever happens, it promises to be an intriguing battle for his services, with the Reds hoping their appointment of new sporting director Richard Hughes may help them in their pursuit.
The former Bournemouth chief previously worked with Alonso's agent, Inaki Ibanez, when he brought Andoni Iraola to the Cherries last summer.
Any deal won't be cheap though with Alonso's compensation fee believed to be between £12.8million and £21.3m, as a fixed £12m exit clause in his Leverkusen contract doesn't kick in until the summer of 2025.
Despite that, Hoeness insisted potential compensation fees would not put Bayern off any managerial candidates.
He added: 'There are hardly any coaches who come into question who are currently free, who don't have a job or who are on sabbatical.
'It's not so easy to tell them that FC Bayern is the measure of all things.'
Bayern return to action after the international break with a game against rivals Borussia Dortmund on March 30, as they build-up to a crunch Champions League quarter-final clash with Arsenal next month.
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