Liverpool news: FSG told perfect ‘heir’ to replace Jurgen Klopp with £11m release clause | Football | Sport
Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) have been urged by Paolo Di Canio to poach Roberto De Zerbi from Brighton when the time eventually comes to find a replacement for Jurgen Klopp at Anfield. Questions have been asked over the German manager’s future at Liverpool following a lacklustre season to date, which already sees them out of every domestic and European cup competition while scrapping to finish in the Premier League’s top four at the end of the campaign.
Klopp remains tied down until the summer of 2026 after signing a long-term extension last year but it has not stopped many from speculating about whether he could be relieved of his duties in the not-too-distant future off the back of Liverpool’s woeful campaign so far. Di Canio has since insisted that De Zerbi could be a ready-made replacement if FSG eventually decide to wield the axe, saying: “Given his playing style, I think he can become Jurgen Klopp’s heir at Liverpool.”
De Zerbi has taken to life in the Premier League like a duck to water since leaving Shakhtar Donetsk for Brighton earlier this season following Graham Potter’s move to Chelsea. The Belgian manager has arguably had the Seagulls playing better than his predecessor did in recent months as he aims to wrap up an impressive first year in England by guiding the club to European qualification at the end of the campaign.
Klopp has already been terrorised by De Zerbi this season when Liverpool were dismantled by Brighton on two occasions in the space of a month back in January, when they were beaten in the Premier League and FA Cup. The Seagulls boss would almost certainly be a shrewd appointment for the Reds if Klopp is sacked ahead of next season, although they might need to act quickly in order to snap him up.
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De Zerbi has also been linked with potential moves to Tottenham and Roma, who are believed to be evaluating their options in the managerial market amid the uncertainty over the respective futures of Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho. He is widely expected to become one of the most highly sought-after coaches in Europe in due course, especially given that his release clause stands at just £11million, but as of right now it remains to be seen which club he will be employed by at the start of next season.
However, it does seem unlikely that Klopp will leave Anfield over the coming months in spite of his Liverpool side falling below their usual high standards over the course of the current campaign. Former Rangers manager Ally McCoist recently insisted that it would be the wrong decision to sack Klopp after just one bad season at Liverpool, telling talkSPORT: “Nonsense, come on, absolute nonsense.
“He’s given Liverpool some of the best times in the club’s history, never mind anything else. What we’re seeing just now, I don’t think it’s shocking for us, I think we’ve all kind of seen it coming. I said earlier on that the biggest problem at Liverpool is that it’s not just one problem.
“I think defensively, they’ve not been the same, the midfield is clearly not right. And upfront, although they’ve been better recently, they’re still not firing, but come on, let’s calm things down here. If anybody deserves an opportunity to have a rebuild, it’s Jurgen Klopp.”
