Jamie Carragher has opened up on his first impression of former Liverpool teammate Xabi Alonso, admitting he was initially skeptical of the Spaniard's confidence.
Alonso joined the Reds from Real Sociedad in 2004 as Rafael Benitez looked to overhaul his squad. He was one of two Spanish players to arrive that summer, with Luis Garcia signing from Barcelona. At the time, Alonso was an unknown quantity among many at Liverpool, despite impressing in La Liga. The Basque-born midfielder started his career at Sociedad and made more than 100 first-team appearances before being signed by Benitez, despite significant interest from Real Madrid.
Carragher's First Impression
Speaking in an interview with Sky Sports, Carragher recalled Benitez's initial praise of Alonso. "And I [laughter] I remember Rafa said, 'Oh, we got this player, Alonso,' And I didn't know Rafa too well. He'd only been there six, eight weeks."
Alonso chimed in: "And you didn't know me neither." Carragher continued: "I didn't know you. No. What was... I would be 26 then? You were 21, 22? And he said, 'We got this amazing player coming. He's he's a real thinker. He understands football.'"
Carragher added: "'He's already telling telling me where we can get better.' And I was thinking, 'who the f*** does he think he is?' This guy from Spain telling Liverpool where they're going."
Alonso's Liverpool Career
Alonso went on to have a glittering career at Anfield. During his first season, he helped the Reds win the Champions League, playing a huge role in their penalty shootout win in the final against AC Milan. In total, he made 210 appearances and scored 19 goals across five successful years at Liverpool before moving to Real Madrid in a £30million move.
It was suggested that Alonso didn't want to leave the Reds, with his contract existing until at least 2012, and that his departure was due to differences with Benitez. His ex-Liverpool teammate Steven Gerrard said he was "devastated" by Alonso's decision, and cited his departure as one of the reasons behind Liverpool's poor run of form at the start of the following season.
Current Role
Alonso, who ended his playing career at Bayern Munich, is now the manager at Chelsea after spending time at Real Madrid and Bayern Munich before that. Carragher and Alonso were reunited earlier this week as the former Liverpool defender went to meet the now Chelsea head coach at the club's training ground.
