Mbappe ‘doesn’t want’ Klopp at Real Madrid but the ex-Liverpool boss is already ‘chosen one’ | OneFootball

Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe does not want ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp as his new head coach next season, according to reports.

Los Blancos sacked Xabi Alonso in January, after their defeat to arch-rivals Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup, amid speculation that there was dressing room discontent over tactics and team selection.

Real Madrid immediately hired Alvaro Arbeloa as his compatriot’s replacement but they didn’t make it clear if he was coming in as a permanent manager or interim until the end of the season.

Either way, Real Madrid are now set to bring in a new manager at the end of the season after they lost to Bayern Munich 6-4 on aggregate in the Champions League, while they now trail Barcelona by nine points in La Liga.

Reports over the last week have claimed that Klopp already has a verbal agreement in place to join Real Madrid once the season is over.

There have even been stories that Real Madrid are already lining up as many as three new signings for Klopp with Manchester City’s Rodri, Borussia Dortmund’s Nico Schlotterbeck and Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez top of the German’s targets.

But now reports in Spain are claiming that key Real Madrid star Mbappe ‘doesn’t want’ Klopp to take over and ‘is not convinced about the hiring’ of the former Liverpool head coach.

Mbappe ‘seems much more inclined to choose Zinedine Zidane’ as Arbeloa’s replacement for next season and ‘would be thrilled to work alongside his childhood idol’.

Unfortunately for Mbappe, Klopp is already ‘the chosen one to try and reverse the current worrying situation’ and ‘talks have been underway for some time, although it is still too early to speak of a finalised agreement’.

The report adds: ‘Nevertheless, there is considerable optimism, especially after it became known that the German coach wants to return to the sidelines.’

‘He’s no longer happy with his current job as a sports advisor for the Red Bull group and wants to feel the pressure and adrenaline of managing a top-level team again.’

Fabrizio Romano insists Real Madrid have not yet “communicated anything official” to Arbeloa but admits that the Spanish giants are interested in Klopp.

Romano said on his YouTube channel said earlier this week: “Arbeloa has been really appreciated internally at Real Madrid. First of all, people like his attitude. Second, they really value how he trusted young players from Castilla, because that is something Real Madrid want to continue doing.

“And then the game against Bayern was also appreciated. The team competed well against Manchester City earlier and then against Bayern too. Even though there was the red card for Camavinga, the attitude and the performance were respected inside the club. Of course, in terms of trophies and results, nothing has been won. That is the point.

“Real Madrid will assess Arbeloa’s position internally. It is possible that he could leave the club between now and the end of the season, but at the moment Real Madrid have not communicated anything official to him.”

On the potential of Klopp arriving, Romano added: “Real Madrid are still having internal conversations about managers, and one of the names always mentioned internally is Jurgen Klopp. But at the moment, that is not something advanced or concrete.

“Real Madrid have many people in the board who really appreciate Klopp, but first they need to understand whether Klopp really wants to return to the daily job of a manager. That has to be clear before anything else.