Liverpool icon Jurgen Klopp remains linked with a move to Real Madrid and has reportedly ‘requested’ signings, while Alvaro Arbeloa is in a ‘new firestorm’.
Klopp stepped away from football management at the end of the 2023/24 campaign, taking a sabbatical following a nine-year stint at Liverpool.
At the time, Klopp said that he may never return to management, but he has reportedly been made a Real Madrid target ahead of a possible summer move.
Klopp currently has a relatively stress-free gig as Red Bull’s Global Head of Football, but Real Madrid are said to be keen to lure him back into management ahead of next season.
Former Liverpool defender Arbeloa is currently Real Madrid’s manager as he recently stepped up from Real Madrid Castilla to replace Xabi Alonso.
Arbeloa has arguably fared better than Alonso, but his side have exited the Copa del Rey and been condemned to a spot in the Champions League play-offs.
Unless Real Madrid wins La Liga or the Champions League this season, it feels pretty likely that they will appoint a manager with far more experience to oversee a long-term project.
It is hard to see Klopp accepting the Real Madrid job as it is tough to see him meshing well with their board, but the Spanish press are continuing to link him with a move.
It has already been claimed that fresh hope of Vinicius Junior signing a new contract could be a blow for Real Madrid’s hopes of appointing Klopp, but Defensa Central are reporting that the Liverpool legend has ‘requested four signings’ to ‘agree a deal’ with Spanish giants.
They say that Klopp is the ‘favourite’ to replace Arbeloa and ‘has requested four signings to finalise the deal: two centre-backs, two midfielders, and the return of Endrick’.
Klopp ‘has not put names on the table’, but the report mentions Kees Smit, Adam Wharton, Nico Schlotterbeck and Jacobo Ramon as possible additions.
The report adds: ‘These are some of the leaks that have reached Real Madrid, who are still searching for a potential coach in case Arbeloa doesn’t win any titles. Klopp has made his shopping list clear.’
And another report in Spain claims Arbeloa is in a ‘new firestorm’ with Real Madrid right-back Dani Carvajal, who ‘looked dejected’ after being an unused substitute in the 2-0 win against Valencia at the weekend.
Carvajal has now not played a single minute for four straight matches and ‘he is annoyed with his perpetual benching’.
The report dramatically added: ‘The full-back needs playing time, both to renew his contract and to make the World Cup squad, although it seems that Álvaro Arbeloa has no intention of giving it to him.
‘The fire has just been lit, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to be extinguished anytime soon.’