Liverpool are reportedly set to get a close-up look at one potential successor to Jurgen Klopp on Thursday night.
According to Portuguese outlet Record [via Sport Witness], scouts from Anfield have been dispatched to tonight’s Taca de Portugal semi-final first leg between Sporting Lisbon and Benfica, with the home side’s manager Ruben Amorim among the leading contenders for the Reds job.
It mightn’t be just the 39-year-old on whom the LFC delegation are adjudicating, either, with several players potentially being assessed with a view to possible transfer approaches later this year.
Usually on scouting missions it’s the players who are on the tips of supporters’ tongues, but in this instance there’s bound to be plenty of focus on Amorim.
TEAMtalk claimed last week that the Sporting Lisbon boss is ‘enormously appreciated’ by FSG and would be the Anfield hierarchy’s preferred go-to option if Xabi Alonso proves unattainable.
Liverpool’s scouts are set to take notes on the 39-year-old’s tactical setup – he’s generally opted for a 3-4-3 formation this season (Transfermarkt) – and possibly his in-game management, an aspect in which Klopp has excelled in recent months, as reflected in a series of inspired substitutions to win crucial points for the Reds.
Amorim will be on a revenge mission tonight against his club’s biggest rivals, after Benfica scored two goals deep into stoppage time to pinch a dramatic 2-1 win during their league meeting in November – a six-point swing which could go a long way to deciding a closely-contested title race.
Despite anything that the Sporting manager might say in public, privately he’s bound to realise that the derby on Thursday night may represent an audition for him to potentially land a lucrative managerial job at one of Europe’s biggest clubs.
It could be well worth tuning into that fixture later on to see how he fares.