Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp revealed in January he will leave the club at the end of the 2023-24 season.

The German's announcement was met with huge sorrow among Reds fans, who have enjoyed plenty of success under the charismatic coach, including a first league title for three decades earned in the 2019-20 campaign.

However, the blow was softened somewhat by the news that Xabi Alonso was the reported front-runner to take over in the Anfield dugout. The former Reds midfielder has a permanent place in the hearts of the fans, and his success at Bayer Leverkusen meant he seemed like a perfect fit to succeed Klopp.

But those dreams were dashed in late March when Alonso revealed he would stay with the Bundesliga club for another season, as Leverkusen look to seal the league title in the coming weeks and prepare for UEFA Champions League football next season.

With that, the Reds will now be looking elsewhere. Numerous candidates have been mentioned since Klopp's bombshell, but some seem more likely to be in consideration than others.

Here are just a few of them, and whether we should be buying or selling the hype.

Rúben Amorim

Sporting CP manager Rúben Amorim has impressed in his early managerial career.

The 39-year-old won the Taça da Liga with Braga in a brief stint in the 2019-2020 season, and in Lisbon, he's claimed a Primeira Liga title, two more Taças da Liga and a Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, with another league trophy surely on the way.

It's unsurprising that Amorim is coveted by many clubs that will look to fill the managerial position next season, with Liverpool, Barcelona and Bayern Munich among them.

According to football journalist Fabrizio Romano, he is the "main name" on Liverpool's shortlist and has a €30 million release clause in his contract with Os Leões.

Amorim has quickly quashed speculation about coming to Anfield, claiming there's no agreement with the Reds.

Liverpool might need to move quickly to seal the deal, with other clubs likely in pursuit, but it seems like a logical next step for a young manager who has achieved notable success so far. Amorim appears to be the Reds' top candidate.

Verdict: Buying

Julian Nagelsmann

Julian Nagelsmann was once the poster boy for a new generation of elite managers, bringing fantastic performances out of Hoffenheim and RB Leipzig before making the jump to Bayern Munich.

At the German giants, he delivered a Bundesliga title and two DFL-Supercups, but his second season in Bavaria was cut short by a controversial sacking in March 2023.

Bayern were only a point behind Borussia Dortmund in the league at the time of his dismissal, and he was also preparing for a DFB-Pokal quarterfinal and a Champions League quarterfinal.

But with Bayern used to cruising in the Bundesliga, bad domestic form was not to be tolerated, and Nagelsmann was giving his marching orders.

The 36-year-old is now managing the German national team, after taking over from Hansi Flick in September. Nagelsmann's efforts are starting to bear fruit, picking up confidence-boosting wins against France and the Netherlands in the March international break.

With Euro 2024 in Germany on the horizon, he will need to keep those levels of performance up to satisfy a feverish home audience.

Liverpool likely won't want to wait until after the tournament to name a successor, and Nagelsmann might be wary of taking a club job so soon after the Euros and with a World Cup approaching in 2026.

He's young enough to stick with the national team for now, enjoy those two huge tournaments and then dip his toes back into club management. Unless Germany suffers the mother of all embarrassments in those competitions, his reputation shouldn't be harmed too much, either.

Time is on Nagelsmann's side, and the Liverpool job—or any other for that matter—can wait.

Verdict: Selling

Roberto De Zerbi

It seems only a matter of time before Brighton & Hove Albion boss Roberto De Zerbi is poached by a more illustrious team.

The Italian's stock has risen incredibly on England's south coast, arguably outperforming successor Graham Potter and guiding the Seagulls to the Europa League round of 16—where Roma knocked them out.

After Liverpool defeated Brighton 2-1 on March 31, Klopp even seemingly gave the 44-year-old his seal of approval.

"I told De Zerbi to keep turning the football world upside down," the German told the BBC's Radio 5 Live. "I will watch it from some distance. I respect so much what he's doing."

Indeed, after his appointment in September 2022, the Reds haven't fared so well against De Zerbi's charges.

Their two draws and two losses against Brighton—including the end of their FA Cup title defense in the fourth round of the 2022-23 competition—prove just how impressive a job De Zerbi has been doing. The Reds' 2-1 home victory in March was not a walk in the park, either.

According to Romano, De Zerbi has a £12 million release clause in his contract, which shouldn't be too prohibitive to the Anfield club. But the transfer expert also noted Bayern are interested.

He'll be on Liverpool's list for sure.

Verdict: Buying

Thomas Tuchel

Only a year after Klopp left Mainz, Thomas Tuchel took over as the club's manager.

When Klopp stood down as Borussia Dortmund manager after the 2014-2015 campaign, it was Tuchel who stepped in to fill the role.

Could it happen again with Liverpool?

Some time has passed since the latter appointment in 2015, with Tuchel taking roles with Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich in the years after leaving Dortmund.

He has experienced success at each stop, although a harsh dismissal at Stamford Bridge and a mutually agreed departure from Bayern at the end of this season have somewhat soured the titles he brought to both clubs.

But will Tuchel want to be seen as a Klopp tribute act again? It's a tried-and-tested path, and the coaches may share some managerial tendencies, but it just doesn't seem likely that the 50-year-old will fancy the idea of replacing a man who has built an undeniable relationship with the fanbase once again.

Maybe Tuchel will take Klopp's lead in one matter, though, and have a break from football when his time at Bayern ends.

Verdict: Selling

Hansi Flick

The third German on this list, and the third Bayern Munich managerial alumnus, Hansi Flick is a free agent after being dismissed as boss of the German national team in 2023.

It was an ill-fated stint, and that's being kind, with just 12 wins in 25 matches and four defeats in his last five games.

Before then, though, he claimed 70 wins from 86 matches with Bayern, winning two Bundesliga titles, the Champions League, the DFB-Pokal, the DFL-Supercup, the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.

Flick has extensive experience across nearly 30 years in coaching, and Liverpool might value a steady hand to guide the club into a new era rather than the more up-and-coming options.

No money will need to change hands to acquire the 59-year-old's services, which isn't the case for options like Amorim and De Zerbi.

Flick is perhaps the outsider among the likely candidates, but he should be an option to be considered by the reshaped Liverpool hierarchy.

Verdict: Buying

Xavi Hernández

Xavi Hernández is another manager stepping aside from his current club at the end of the campaign, waving goodbye to his beloved Barcelona after three years in the Camp Nou hot seat.

The 44-year-old coached the Blaugrana to La Liga glory in 2022-23 after a few barren years domestically, and he also grabbed the Supercopa de España in the same season.

But Barça are eight points adrift in the defense of their domestic title, and the Champions League is their only route left to silverware this year. They hold a 3-2 first-leg quarterfinal lead against Paris Saint-Germain ahead of the return game at the Camp Nou.

It just doesn't seem likely that Michael Edwards and FSG will be looking at that resume too keenly. Xavi benefitted from having the much-touted Barcelona DNA in his system, making success with the Catalans perhaps a bit easier to come by.

His appointment would arguably be the biggest gamble of the lot, and with the Liverpool board needing to get this appointment right, they'll probably look in other directions.

Verdict: Selling