Real Madrid: Klopp reveals no contact after Xabi Alonso dismissal

Jurgen Klopp says he has not been contacted by Real Madrid following Xabi Alonso’s departure from the club.

Klopp has not managed since leaving Liverpool in 2024 and now serves as Red Bull’s head of global soccer, but he has inevitably been linked with the vacancy created by Alonso’s exit.

Speaking on Austrian broadcaster Servus TV, the former Liverpool manager moved to distance himself from the speculation.

“The rumours have been circulating for some time now. And I know exactly what your question is getting at, but it has nothing to do with me,” Klopp said when asked whether his phone had started ringing after Alonso’s departure.

“It has actually rung, but not from Madrid,” he reportedly added with a smile, saying the situation “hasn’t affected” him “at all”.

Klopp expressed his sympathy for Alonso, whom he described as a highly talented coach, and suggested the speed of his exit was indicative of broader issues at the Spanish giants rather than a personal failing. “It is another sign that something isn’t working perfectly there,” he said.

“This shows several things: on the one hand, that we [coaches] no longer have any time, and on the other hand, that the demands at Real Madrid are, logically, enormous.”

Klopp admitted he was surprised by how quickly Alonso’s tenure unravelled and noted that reports of tension between the coach and the squad had emerged relatively early.

“When you arrive after a legend and an incredibly good coach, who had a very specific way of coaching his team, Carlo Ancelotti, if you arrive there and try to implement some new rules, this time it seems it has proven too difficult,” he said.

Despite the setback, Klopp voiced confidence in Alonso’s long-term prospects, saying he felt sorry for him and backing him to succeed elsewhere in the future.

When asked whether Alonso could now be a candidate for a return to Liverpool, Klopp played down the idea of any immediate move.

He said he did not believe Alonso would leave his job in Spain “and be ready to start somewhere else the next day”, but acknowledged that changes were likely across the managerial landscape in the coming months.

“Many things will happen in the summer,” Klopp said, adding that the coaching market “will be reshuffled”.