As the 2023/24 season draws to a close, it also marks the beginning of the end for Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool tenure. It has been a historic reign for the German, who has won several honours at Anfield, including the Champions League in 2018/19 and the Premier League in 2019/20.

There are several names linked with the soon-to-be vacant Liverpool job. Arguably the favourite for the role is Sporting manager Ruben Amorim. The former Benfica midfielder has reportedly agreed on personal terms with the Reds and is rumoured to be signing a three-year contract at Anfield.

Amorim has been extremely successful for Sporting and has won four trophies during his time in charge, which includes a league title in 2020/21. Leões are hunting down their second league title under Amorim, and currently sit four points clear of Benfica with one game in hand.

However, it is not a guarantee that Liverpool will manage to acquire the services of Amorim, with other clubs showing interest. If they do not manage to appoint Amorim, there are other options Liverpool could look at, although perhaps one stands out more than the others.

The perfect alternative for Amorim

Should Amorim become unattainable for Liverpool in the summer, they could well instead turn their attention to Bologna manager Thiago Motta, who is taking Serie A by storm so far this season.

That's according to Ben Jacobs, who told GIVEMESPORT: "Thiago Motta is doing a brilliant job at Bologna, and Liverpool love candidates that have over performed based upon the resource available to them – so he cannot be discounted at this point, either.

“And when we say discounted, we’re talking about who is going to get to the final shortlist and who isn’t. And that’s what I mean about Liverpool – it’s a step-by-step process."

Amorim has a release clause of £25.7m in his current deal with Sporting, although there is not a release clause in Motta’s deal with Bologna, which his agent confirmed in an interview in February.

Motta, a former midfielder who has played for the likes of Barcelona, Inter and PSG, is also not short of suitors this summer. One of the many clubs linked to him includes Liverpool’s rivals Manchester United, who could part ways with Erik ten Hag in favour of appointing Motta.

Motta's famous and unique style

The Athletic’s Serie A correspondent James Horncastle described Motta and his Bologna side as “special” recently on X, and it is easy to understand why, given the feats of a remarkable nature they are achieving this season.

Bologna are currently fourth in Serie A, on 58 points, three points clear of fifth place Roma. Whilst winning the Scudetto seems highly unlikely, they could certainly finish as high as second, and achieve Champions League qualification.

However, what makes Motta unique is the 2-7-2 system he employs, and as an extension of that, the way he sees football. To break it down further, Motta sees the players on the pitch in a vertical, rather than horizontal, formation, breaking down the pitch into three vertical sections rather than the usual defensive, midfield, and attacking lines most see the game.

One of Motta’s most interesting quotes surrounding his system and the way he views the pitch came when he was PSG U19s manager, in an interview he gave with Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport. Motta explained that the “goalkeeper counts as one of the midfield seven”.

Ideally, Motta would like his goalkeeper to push up when his side has the ball, becoming a true part of his side’s play and essentially becoming another midfield player.

This would translate well over to Liverpool, whose first-choice goalkeeper, Alisson, is confident with the ball at his feet, and would not have any issues playing further forward.

Indeed, the Brazilian averages 36.81 passes per 90 minutes this season, ranking him in the top 10% amongst goalkeepers in Europe’s big five leagues, as per Fbref, so he should have no issues adapting to Motta’s demands.

Motta’s Bologna are a side that likes lots of possession. According to Fbref, they average 58.3% of the ball per game in Serie A this season, which ranks them 15th in Europe’s big five leagues. Liverpool are one of the 14 sides better than them, with an average of 60.7% possession per match, placing them ninth. The Reds would not have any trouble adapting to Motta’s high-possession style, either.

The stats suggest Motta would certainly be a good fit for Liverpool, and whilst every club needs to adapt to a new manager, the transition to Motta would be fairly seamless and Liverpool could well hit the ground running under the former Italy international. If they do not land their number one target in Amorim, the Bologna manager could prove to be an astute second choice.