Former Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho is going head to head with Xabi Alonso next month in the Europa League semi-final.
Alonso has had a great start to life as a manager. When Xabi Alonso took over Bayer Leverkusen in October, 2022, the Bundesliga side were drifting in the relegation zone. And now, they are 6th in the league.
Interestingly, Mourinho had predicted that Alonso would become a great manager back in 2019.
Mourinho had said: “His father was a manager, so he grew up similar to me. Then he became a player – of course much better than I was.
“He became a player, a top player. His position on the pitch and his knowledge of the game – very high.
“He played in Spain, in England and in Germany. And he was coached by Guardiola with Bayern, by myself in Real Madrid, by Ancelotti in Real Madrid, by Benitez in Liverpool.
“So, I think if you put all this together, Xabi has the conditions to be a very good coach.”
