Alonso has a release clause in case his former clubs come calling

A great player does not necessarily have to be a great coach, Frank Lampard, Andrea Pirlo, and even Steven Gerrard realized how much those two professions may be in collision. And many others who tried to coach on a highest level after finishing their careers, simply failed. However, with Xabi Alonso, the story could be different. The first signals are positive. He took over Bayer Leverkusen when they were second to last in the Bundesliga and results were visible soon enough. The Spaniard reached semi-finals of the Europa League last season and got Bayer up the table and provided another season of European football. Ahead of this month’s international break, Leverkusen are at the top of Bundesliga.

But, Bayer fans, who are whispering about the possible title chase will not like the news which were published by Bild. The German newspapers is claiming that the Spanish coach has an exit clause in his contract, which will allow him to leave the club. The good news is that there are only three clubs which are mentioned in the contract, and those three are Xabi’s former teams Real Madrid, Bayern and Liverpool. For weeks now, it has been rumored that Real Madrid and Bayern Munich are seriously interested, that they are closely monitoring the development of the situation and the game of Bayer Leverkusen.

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They are obviously pleased with what they see from their former player, because Alonso's team is undefeated in the DFB Cup and the Europa League, while it holds the leading position in the Bundesliga. Xabi Alonso will be able to leave Bayer Leverkusen before the contract expires, in case these three clubs come calling, but Bild doesn’t have the information about the potential figure in the release clause. Considering that the Spaniard is at the beginning of his career and the circumstances in which he took over the team, they probably cannot count on a substantial figure.

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Before arriving at Leverkusen, he managed Real Sociedad's B team and worked in Real Madrid's youth teams. At Bayer, he got the chance to work independently at a higher level and former Bayern boss Ottmar Hitzfeld believes that he must not neglect this fact.

"My recommendation for Xabi is that he stays in Leverkusen until 2025. I think that he should repay the club for giving him the opportunity to work as a coach in the Bundesliga. Of course, it is difficult to say no to Real Madrid if there really is an offer” admitted the Swiss tactician. Real Madrid seems as the most realistic option, because Carlo Ancelotti will perform the selector function in Brazil from the summer.