{"id":433668,"date":"2026-05-05T16:43:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T16:43:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/433668\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T16:43:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T16:43:12","slug":"dougie-critchley-reacts-to-rumours","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/433668\/","title":{"rendered":"Dougie Critchley reacts to rumours"},"content":{"rendered":"

Xabi Alonso could hold fire on accepting a new head coach position this summer.<\/p>\n

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Sky Sports Dougie Critchley suggested that the Spaniard was highly unlikely to take on the Chelsea job amid links with the position vacated by Liam Rosenior in April.<\/p>\n

The former Real Madrid boss has also been heavily linked with Arne Slot\u2019s job at Liverpool.<\/p>\n

Xabi Alonso won\u2019t take the Chelsea head coach role<\/p>\n

Critchely hopped onto X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday afternoon to cast some doubt over suggestions that Alonso could be the next Chelsea head coach.<\/a><\/p>\n

Xabi Alonso rejected Gladbach to continue to develop at Real Sociedad B\u2026<\/p>\n

Xabi Alonso rejected Liverpool on the back of his unbeaten League and Cup double to continue to develop at Leverkusen\u2026<\/p>\n

I’m staggered that people think he’d be keen to become the 7th permanent manager\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/RLKhMmZNTL<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Dougie Critchley (@DougieCritchley) May 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

And we\u2019d have to wholeheartedly agree with the reputable journalist that such a move would seem\u2026 well\u2026 a little bit daft to say the least.<\/p>\n

Want more Empire of the Kop coverage? Add us as a\u00a0preferred source on Google<\/a>\u00a0to your favourites list for news you can trust<\/p>\n

Here we\u2019re talking about a club that seems to relish in leaving managers next to no time to establish themselves in the position and build a culture.<\/p>\n

Mind, we don\u2019t think Rosenior was particularly well-equipped to meet the challenge of restoring Chelsea back within the elite class of Premier League clubs.<\/p>\n

While you\u2019d back Alonso to get more of a tune out of the Blues by comparison, it\u2019s an environment that would prove to be even more toxic than the one he experienced in Madrid.<\/p>\n

Liverpool or Bayern remain Alonso\u2019s ideal next moves<\/p>\n

There are a lot of\u00a0ifs, buts\u00a0and\u00a0maybes\u00a0involved, but it\u2019s hard to imagine Alonso accepting a step down below what his talents deserve.<\/p>\n

Yes, perhaps there\u2019s an argument for taking a relatively \u201csafe\u201d role \u2013 perhaps at a club comparable to Bayer Leverkusen\u2019s level.<\/p>\n

But that would be assuming the Bundesliga winner feels his time in Real Madrid was such a failure it necessitates a decision designed to restore his reputation. And as far as we\u2019re concerned, no such effort is required; we agree with Critchley\u2019s view that his dismissal at Real Madrid was indeed unfair.<\/p>\n

As such, Xabi Alonso should be aiming for the kind of next step that guided his decision to leave Leverkusen.<\/p>\n

Having ticked Madrid off his list, that really only leaves jobs of the calibre of Liverpool and Bayern Munich. Vincent Kompany remains extremely settled in Bavaria, but there\u2019s an ongoing question mark over the future of Arne Slot at L4<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In that case, it may very well be ideal to wait and see how this situation develops.<\/p>\n

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