‘Good fit’… Journalist thinks 51-year-old would be manager of Liverpool if Jurgen Klopp left last year

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As Liverpool hone in on their options to replace Jurgen Klopp, the same small band of names are being mentioned.

Xabi Alonso is quite clearly the Reds’ number one choice. The Spaniard would be a dream appointment for the club and would help soften the blow of Klopp’s exit a little. But Alonso is a wanted man. With Bayern Munich also pushing to hire him this summer, there’s no guarantee that he ends up at Liverpool.

Ruben Amorim appears to be second choice, with a handful of other names mentioned besides. One man who hasn’t been brought up is Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino. Obviously, having only taken over at Stamford Bridge last year – and at a direct rival – there’s good reason that Pochettino isn’t in the running.

But according to journalist Dominic King, the Argentine head coach would have likely been on Liverpool’s list had Klopp’s departure come a year ago.

“If Jurgen Klopp had said 12 months ago that he was leaving I think Pochettino would have been long odds on to be Liverpool’s next manager,” King told The Daily Mail’s It’s All Kicking Off! podcast.

“In terms of how he promotes young kids, his style of play, I think he has always had a respect for Liverpool too after speaking to him. I remember the Champions League final five years ago and the way he spoke about Liverpool then. I think he would have been a good fit.”

Pochettino tipped as ‘good fit’ at Liverpool

Clearly, there’s no chance Pochettino would be in Liverpool’s thinking right now. Not only is he relatively new in at Chelsea, but he also has his team sitting 10th in the Premier League table.

Since he left Tottenham in 2019, Poch’s reputation has taken a little bit of a battering.

During his time at Spurs the former PSG defender was seen as one of best coaches in the game. But having failed to really convince in a spell back in Paris, Pochettino no longer has that reputation.

Had he have joined Chelsea straight from Spurs for example, his capture would have been lauded by fans. As it was, his arrival in 2023 was greeted with a sense of anti-climax.

Still, you do feel as though if Liverpool had been on the hunt for a coach last year, that Pochettino would have been considered.

He worked wonders while on a tight budget at Spurs and Southampton, and that will have surely appealed to FSG.

Furthermore, his emotional bond with the Tottenham fans especially showed that he can build up the kind of connection Liverpool supporters demand of their manager.

At the time, Alonso would also unlikely have been on the shortlist. Although he was doing really well at Leverkusen, he’d only been there a matter of months. Signs were good, but the Spaniard didn’t have enough to back it up just yet. Some would argue that he still doesn’t.

Anyway, whatever the case may be, there was no opening at Liverpool and Poch went to Chelsea. And having lost that final to Klopp and the Reds in 2019, he’ll be desperate to get his own back this Sunday.