Xabi Alonso is a name that many fans are starting to hear more and more nowadays, as his Bayer Leverkusen side continue to defy expectations over in Germany, having gone unbeaten in the Bundesliga after 20 games.
And with the recent news of Jürgen Klopp announcing his departure from Liverpool at the end of the current campaign, a lot of rumours have started to circulate involving the former Reds midfielder.
Football FanCast has decided to take a deeper dive into his accomplishments, personal life and what made him the man he is today.
Who is Xabi Alonso?
Xabier Alonso Olano is a Spanish football coach and former professional player who is currently the head coach of Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen.
Alonso was born on 25th November 1981 in Tolosa, Spain, making him 42 years of age.
He made a name for himself as a midfield enforcer, mainly in his time at Liverpool and Real Madrid. He ended his career with 18 trophies to his name, which included one World Cup, two Champions Leagues, two European Championships, three German and one Spanish league titles, two UEFA Super Cups, one German Cup winners' medal, one FA Cup, two Copas del Rey, one Spanish Super Cup, one German Super Cup and a Community Shield.
Xabi Alonso's salary at Bayer Leverkusen
When Xabi Alonso extended his contract with Bayer Leverkusen until August 2026, he is thought to have received a huge pay rise. According to German outlet Bild, the former Spain international now earns up to €6m (£5.12m) a year.
Just to put this into perspective, he would be the sixth-highest-paid manager in the Premier League.
Xabi Alonso's net worth
Of course, no one can put an exact number on Xabi Alonso's net worth apart from the man himself. However, Celebrity Net Worth claims that the Bayer Leverkusen boss is worth around $20m (£15.9m).
The majority of his money will have been earned during his trophy-laden playing career, with clubs like Bayern Munich, Liverpool and Real Madrid no doubt paying a high premium in terms of his wages. If you add his current managerial wages as well as any investments and side projects he may have, then you could say his net worth may even be more than that figure above.
Xabi Alonso's wife
The Spaniard is married to Nagore Aranburu.
There's a bit of a romance story involving the pair as they met all the way back during Alonso's youth days at Real Sociedad.
Nagore has had a number of jobs, working as a model, actor, fashion designer, and as many Liverpool fans will remember, a receptionist.
There is a rather comical story of when she worked as a hotel receptionist in Liverpool, where Peter Crouch later admitted he had fallen in love with her. Little did he know that it was Alonso's wife, which was later relayed to him by Jamie Carragher.
Xabi Alonso's squad number at Liverpool
Xabi Alonso famously wore the number 14 shirt throughout his time at Liverpool, and it's safe to say it served him well.
In terms of other clubs, it varied, but he has a clear favourite.
Liverpool, Real Madrid & Bayern Munich
14
Bayern Munich
3
Real Madrid
22
Real Sociedad
4
Real Sociedad
28
SD Eibar
26
Real Sociedad
31
Xabi Alonso to Liverpool rumours
If the bookies are anything to go by, Alonso looks like the man to take the reins from Jürgen Klopp, as he's currently priced at 1/2 at Sky Bet to land the Anfield job this summer.
And the current noise around Liverpool is that the Spaniard has been pushed forward as a strong candidate to replace the German, which isn't really a surprise given how well Bayer Leverkusen are doing this season and his obvious links to Merseyside.
Xabi Alonso's retirement
Xabi Alonso announced his retirement on his social media back in March 2017 at the age of 35, with an iconic post that stated; 'Lived it. Loved it. Farewell, beautiful game.'
The 375,000 likes that the post received shows just how appreciated he was and how much he did for the game.
Xabi Alonso's stats as a player
Xabi Alonso made a whopping 695 appearances throughout this career, which spanned across five professional clubs. He managed to accumulate 43 goals and 69 assists across his career.
The three most notable teams were Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, but he did also play for Real Sociedad and Eibar.
Real Madrid
236
6
31
Liverpool
210
18
20
Real Sociedad
124
10
6
Bayern Munich
117
9
12
Eibar
8
0
0
Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen managerial record
Xabi Alonso has set things alight this season at Bayer Leverkusen. The German club are currently 30 games unbeaten in all competitions and are sitting pretty at the top of the Bundesliga table.
The Spaniard has been in charge of 67 games in Leverkusen, losing just 10 times, drawing 14 and winning 43, which gives him a points-per-match total of 2.13.
67
43
14
10
2.13
Xabi Alonso's formation and tactics at Bayer Leverkusen
Xabi Alonso's favourite formation is 3-4-2-1, which has brought him huge success in Germany this term.
Everyone knows their roles. The centre of the pitch is packed with bodies, leaving room for the pacey wide-men to advance. Goals can come from anywhere in Alonso's sides, with his wing-backs and two more attacking midfielders playing huge roles.
The wide-men play high when in possession, but when the ball is lost, they pull back to around the halfway line.
One key to any Alonso side is having potent finishers throughout the side, which has been evident as Victor Boniface, Patrik Schick, Amine Adli, Nathan Tella, Jonas Hofmann, Florian Wirtz, Adam Hlozek, Jonathan Tah, Alejandro Grimaldo and Jeremie Frimpong have all contributed to a combined 76 goals so far this season, and we're only 30 games in.
Victor Boniface
23
16
8
Alejandro Grimaldo
29
9
11
Florian Wirtz
28
8
15
Jeremie Frimpong
26
7
10
Jonas Hofmann
28
7
9