By Aaron Conlon
Despite Liverpool’s strong links with Sporting Lisbon boss Ruben Amorim and rumours of a verbal agreement, last week Amorim insisted there was “no interview and certainly no agreement” between himself and the club, also commenting that: “This is the last time I’m going to talk about my future.”
As Liverpool’s hunt for Jurgen Klopp’s successor intensifies after favourite Xabi Alonso confirmed his commitment to Bayer Leverkusen next season and Amorim playing down links, an unlikely contender has now emerged.
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Former Bayern Munich and Vfl Wolfsburg manager Niko Kovac has appeared as Liverpool’s next target according to a report from the Daily Mail claiming that the 52-year-old is ‘under consideration’ at Anfield.
Whilst at Wolfsburg, Kovac often deployed a 4-2-3-1 system with the three in the middle being pivotal for transition. This is a system which could suit Liverpool with Wataru Endo and Alexis Macalister creating the 2 in front of defence whilst Dominik Szoboszlai is allowed more attacking freedom as a 10, a position that he previously filled for RB Leipzig.
However, whilst at Monaco he deployed numerous different formations with 4-4-2 and 3-5-2 being most apparent, a far cry from Jurgen Klopp’s fixed 4-3-3 that has been seen since his arrival in 2015.
During his time in Munich, a side with similar dominance in games to Liverpool, Kovac built a strong defensive block which facilitated Bayern’s ability to throw men forward and counterattack in the blink of an eye, something often associated with Jurgen Klopp’s teams.
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Throughout Kovac’s managerial career, he has won the Bundesliga, the German Super Cup and the German Cup twice, proving his ability to win. Kovac has been without a job since March after being relieved of his duties by Wolfsburg and is rumoured to be eager to replace Klopp.
Whilst the former long-standing captain of the Croatia national team might not be the obvious candidate to arrive on Merseyside, with Alonso committing to Leverkusen having confirmed the league title, Julian Nagelsmann seemingly headed back to Bayern Munich and Amorim shutting down speculation for the timebeing at least, it remains possible that the Reds could still need to look further afield for their man.
Described as a ‘leader’ and possessing ‘charisma’ by German legend Lothar Matthaus, Kovac certainly possesses a number of the assets to attempt to fill the void left behind by Klopp.
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