Xabi Alonso: Joe Cole questions Bayer Leverkusen manager’s call to snub Liverpool – ‘Terrible decision’

Joe Cole believes Xabi Alonso has made a "terrible decision" to snub Liverpool by committing to stay at Bayer Leverkusen beyond the end of the 2023/24 season.

Alonso had been heavily linked with a move to Anfield to replace the departing Jurgen Klopp with the vacancy also open at Bayern Munich over the summer, but he will stay with Leverkusen and could be leading a UEFA Champions League charge and Bundesliga title defence next season.

Alonso announced "my job is not done here" but Cole criticised the decision, with the possibility that the German could suffer some second-season syndrome at Leverkusen.

“I think it’s a terrible decision,” Cole told TNT Sports. “As managers your stock goes so up and down so quickly, he’s the hottest property in world football right now in management, I think he should’ve made the move this summer.

“In a years’ time it could be completely different, keeping this team together is going to be tough enough because they’ve got some fantastic players and all the giants in Europe are going to be looking at them.”

With just eight games to play, Leverkusen hold a 10-point lead over Bayern Munich and don’t have to play Harry Kane’s side again. Alonso looks set to break the Bavarians’ stranglehold on the league that they’ve held for over a decade.

Leverkusen haven’t lost a single game all season in all competitions and took a giant step towards the title by defeating Bayern with their rampant 3-0 victory over the defending champions. They’ve never won the Bundesliga but have been runners-up on five occasions, most recently in the 2010/11 season.

Leverkusen are also into the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal against second-division Fortuna Dusseldorf, and face West Ham in the quarter-finals of the Europa League after overcoming two tough legs against Qarabag.

The Hammers are in their own European chase, and ahead of a crunch match with Newcastle on TNT Sports and discovery+, former Bayern midfielder Owen Hargreaves was asked for his thoughts on Alonso’s move.

“I’m impressed actually, I think he’s made the right call, stay there and then see what happens in the summer,” Hargreaves said.

“If he wins the Bundesliga, maybe another European trophy and he can keep that team together then it could be something special. It’s probably a bit of a surprise, most managers when their stock’s high they tend to strike but Xabi, obviously relatively young as a manager he wants to stay where he’s very comfortable.”

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