Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is open to discussing terms with Real Madrid if the Spanish club comes knocking in the summer, a report said.
German manager Klopp, who bid farewell to an illustrious time at Liverpool citing a lack of energy, was earlier listed as a possible candidate to replace Xabi Alonso at the Santiago Bernabeu if the axe did fall on the Spaniard's neck. It turns out Klopp is also open to listening to Los Blancos if they will have him.
Real announced that club great Xabi Alonso had left by mutual agreement on Monday, following a poor run of form and reports of unrest with some of his senior players. Forty-two-year-old Alvaro Arbeloa, Xabi's former teammate, stepped up in his place from the reserve team, Real Madrid Castilla. Arbeloa is unlikely to be a long-term choice, with Real looking to get a more experienced manager to take over on a permanent deal.
Klopp's name comes into the discussion against this backdrop. The Borussia Dortmund legend is currently working as the Head of Global Soccer for Red Bull after agreeing on a long-term contract. Klopp would give starting a fresh chapter in the Spanish capital serious consideration if Real makes the move, Sky Sports Germany claimed in a report. "I really feel sorry for him, because I consider him a great coach. It has nothing to do with me and didn't trigger anything in me either," Klopp had said about Xabi's exit.
Meanwhile, he reportedly told a German news channel: "My phone did actually ring – but not from Madrid. There were, however, a few people who felt they needed to bring it up with me."
Things are not any better at the Bernabeu after Xabi's sacking, as Arbeloa got off to a dismal start as the new coach, seeing his team lose 3-2 to second-division club Albacete and drop out of the Copa del Rey in the round of 16 on Wednesday.
