Real Madrid told Jurgen Klopp would REJECT job as Carlo Ancelotti replacement identified

Former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has been identified as a potential successor to Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid but an ex-Reds star is not convinced that he will make the move to Spain

Former Liverpool defender Markus Babbel has claimed that Jurgen Klopp would reject the chance to coach Real Madrid if the Spanish giants ask him to replace Carlo Ancelotti this summer. Babbel, the ex-German international who helped the Merseysiders win an historic FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup treble in 2001, reckons Klopp knows he could not cope with the pressure that comes with being the main man at the Bernabeu.

Madrid will part company with Ancelotti after a second spell in charge that has brought two Champions League successes in three years following their elimination at the hands of Arsenal in this season’s competition.

But Babbel believes Klopp will only give up his job as Head of Global Soccer for Red Bull if he is offered the opportunity to coach Germany’s national team. Babbel said: “I’m not sure if Klopp will return to management again.

“I can’t see him taking the Real Madrid job if Carlo Ancelotti goes this summer and they offered him the role. I can’t see him returning to Liverpool in a director’s role.

“He stopped managing because he had no energy anymore and because the pressure is so high – and the pressure at Madrid is bigger than at Liverpool.

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“In Madrid, if you lose one or two games, you are under so much pressure. You see Ancelotti right now, he’s under massive pressure after going out of the Champions League.

“I’m not sure if Klopp would want that. He has a perfect life now, he’s enjoying it, he has a fascinating project at Red Bull, so why would he leave to take over Real Madrid?

“I think his position at Red Bull is the perfect position for him. You work just a little bit, you’re not on the training ground every day and you get to travel around the world.

“This is what he wants – to be involved in a project but not as the main man. My feeling at the moment is he’s enjoying life, he looks brilliant, he’s lost kilos, he looks really smart.

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“The only way I can see him returning to management is with a national team. Maybe with Germany, after Julian Nagelsmann decides to move to a new club.

“If the whole of German football is begging for Klopp, maybe then he’ll take the German national team role. But I don’t see him returning to club management.”

Babbel told betting website Makthavare that he expects former Kop midfielder Xabi Alonso to take control in Madrid – but not until the summer of 2026. He feels Alonso – who also played for Real – still has unfinished business with Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen.

Babbel said: “I can definitely see Xabi Alonso at Real Madrid when he moves on from Bayer Leverkusen. Everybody can see him at Real Madrid because he has such great potential as a manager.

“I love him because he’s different. In his head, he has a plan. He wants to learn at a club where he can build something, like at Leverkusen, and where the pressure is not so big as they are not such a big club traditionally. Everything is brilliant there for him.

“I don’t think he’ll say at the end of the season that he wants to leave Leverkusen, he’s still thinking he wants to learn at the club. I think he’ll stay for one more season at Leverkusen and then leave in 2026 for Real Madrid.

“But if Carlo Ancelotti is struggling and gets sacked this summer, then Alonso will have a decision to make. If you get a call from Real Madrid, you have to be strong to say no to the biggest club in the world.”

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