Pep Guardiola is commanding Manchester City’s late title assault, but there are many looking ahead to a future where the Catalan is no longer at the club
Arsenal icon Emmanuel Petit believes Xabi Alonso would choose Liverpool over replacing Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. Alonso is a free agent again having been sacked by Real Madrid last month.
The Spaniard has been mentioned as a potential successor to Guardiola, should the Catalan choose to walk away from the Etihad Stadium at the end of his deal in 2027 or before. It was claimed recently there is an “extremely strong chance” of Guardiola departing this year, despite being under contract beyond that.
In such situation, City could feasibly turn to Alonso, given his links to the Etihad Stadium hotseat in the past. However, with Arne Slot also enduring a disastrous Premier League title defence at Liverpool, the Spaniard has also been linked with a move to Anfield.
FOLLOW OUR MAN CITY FB PAGE! Latest news and analysis via the MEN’s Manchester City Facebook page
If there is a situation where both Liverpool and City are battling for Alonso’s signature, Petit believes Alonso would return to the club where he won the Champions League.
Speaking to Ignition Casino, Petit said: “If Xabi Alonso has the chance to come back to Liverpool, even if the door is open at Man City, I’m pretty sure he would join Liverpool.
Ensure our latest sport headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as Preferred Source in your Google search settings
“He has a connection to Liverpool. He’s been a player over there and he won trophies over there. He failed at Real Madrid but that has been the case for many managers over there.
“I think if he has the chance to join the Premier League, Liverpool would be the perfect club for him. It’s like Mikel Arteta’s connection to Arsenal, it would mean he wouldn’t consider joining Manchester City even when Pep Guardiola leaves.”
The Times have claimed it’s the belief of rival Premier League bosses and executives that Guardiola is managing his final campaign in Manchester. This has been contradicted by the City boss on several occasions.
In January, when asked about his future, he said: “I have a contract. I said a thousand million times. It’s 10 years here. I will leave one day, but I have a contract.”
He also gave a similar answer to another query about his time at City, replying: “I have one more year on my contract. The question of that is [the same as] one or two months ago, but I will tell you again that it is the same answer.”
The Times have also claimed Alonso would be interested in a move to the Premier League, but is happy to wait until the summer to make his decision.
Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle for the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games this season, an increase of up to 100 more.