Pep Guardiola lauds Liverpool-linked Xabi Alonso, names 4 players he's coached who could become great managers

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has lavished praise on Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso, who's been linked with the Liverpool job after Jurgen Klopp's departure announcement.

The German revealed in January that he would step down as Reds boss at the end of the season, insisting that he's run out of energy and needs a sabbatical.

Leverkusen have been in stellar form this season under Alonso, leading the Bundesliga by eight points over second-placed Bayern Munich. The Liverpool icon, who scored in the club's iconic Champions League win in Istanbul, is reportedly their top target to replace Klopp.

When asked about Alonso being linked with Liverpool, Guardiola said (via The Mirror):

"It’s a question for Liverpool, and of course, I’m not going to answer, because I don’t know the ideas that they have. But if you ask me about the job that he is doing, honestly? Wow! It’s the only team in modern football that’s unbeaten in all competitions and fighting in that way with Bayern Munich there."

Guardiola proceeded to name four players he's coached who have the potential to become great managers, having managed Alonso as a player at Bayern Munich. When asked if he saw Alonso moving into management at the time, Guardiola said:

"In that moment? Yeah – there are holding midfielders, they ask you questions and how curious they are about the game."

"Normally holding midfielders like him, [Javier] Mascherano, [Sergio] Busquets – the holding midfielders I had Rodri, [Ilkay] Gundogan - they will be involved in football for sure because they have a vision for a global perspective that is different."

While Sergio Busquets, Rodri, and Ilkay Gundogan are yet to hang up their boots, former Liverpool star Javier Mascherano has kickstarted his managerial career, coaching Argentine's youth team.

Jurgen Klopp defends Chelsea amid criticism over Carabao Cup defeat to Liverpool

Liverpool secured a 1-0 victory over Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley on Sunday (February 25), courtesy of Virgil van Dijk's extra-time header. The Blues contested well to keep it a stalemate at the end of the regulation 90.

However, Chelsea seemed fatigued in the extra half-hour, with manager Mauricio Pochettino admitting after the game that his side fought merely to force a penalty shootout instead of going for the win.

The west London outfit's performance was laid into by pundit Gary Neville, who labeled Chelsea the 'billion-pound bottle jobs' while on commentary duty for Sky Sports. However, Klopp believes it's an unfair assessment of their performance, admitting he could sympathize with the runners-up.

The Liverpool boss said (via The Guardian):

“They didn’t deserve to get all the blame. They played a really good football game, in a final where nobody plays their absolute best football. You just have to beat the opponent, and that’s what we did. That’s why this ‘bottling’ thing is really not mine. I really don’t understand it."

"They wanted it badly and didn’t get it, and I saw in the faces of the players and Poch after the game that it felt horrible. I don’t think anybody deserves these kinds of feelings but in finals, it is like that, that one feels like that and the other one is happier. It’s tricky but it is the world we are living in.”

The Merseysiders will next be in action against Southampton in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Wednesday (February 28).