Exclusive: Expert confirms Liverpool interest in underrated Ligue 1 manager who’s done “phenomenal” job

Liverpool have a long-standing interest in Lens manager Franck Haise as he’s linked as a possible outsider in the race to replace Jurgen Klopp at Anfield this summer.

The French tactician has done impressive work during his time in Ligue 1, though most Premier League fans are probably not that familiar with him, so might be surprised seeing him mentioned alongside a big club like Liverpool.

While the likes of Xabi Alonso and Roberto De Zerbi may seem like more obvious choices for the Reds, French football expert Jonathan Johnson has praised Haise and provided his insight into the links as he spoke exclusively to CaughtOffside for his latest Daily Briefing column.

Johnson believes Haise deserves more credit for the job he’s done turning Lens around on a fraction of the budget managers have worked with at Paris Saint-Germain, while he also noted there might be comparisons to make with Jurgen Klopp’s success during his spell in charge of Borussia Dortmund.

Haise Liverpool links not as crazy as they sound, says Johnson

“Although we’ve heard a lot about names like Xabi Alonso and Roberto De Zerbi, Lens manager Franck Haise has also been linked as one potential outsider for the Liverpool job after his impressive work in Ligue 1,” Johnson said.

“My understanding is that, yes, there has been interest in him going back a couple of years now, not just from Liverpool but also from other clubs across Europe.

“I don’t think you can underplay the massive role that he’s played in the restoration of Lens to being one of France’s major clubs once again. Lens has huge cultural significance to French football, a huge fan-base, and there are a lot of parallels between them and Borussia Dortmund, which perhaps makes sense as him being linked as someone who could follow Jurgen Klopp. Still, in terms of what he’s done on the pitch he’s not had quite the same amount of time with Lens as Klopp had with Dortmund, so he doesn’t have the silverware or European runs to boast.

“What Haise has done, though, is ensured Lens got back into the Champions League this season, after finishing just a point behind champions PSG last term, and they’ve never finished lower than 7th under the 52-year-old. They are statistically the most in-form team in France in 2024, so if you bear in mind that he’s done all this with a fraction of the budget of PSG, he has done a phenomenal job.

“He keeps improving players as well, if you look at the names the club have sold at a major profit, while he’s also kept the team competitive even after they’ve left, so it’s hard to underplay what a terrific job he’s done, and it’s not gone unnoticed by English clubs, with Brighton looking at him before appointing Roberto De Zerbi to replace Graham Potter.

“While I’d expect Haise to continue being on the radar of top clubs around Europe, there might be some issues with the language barrier at Liverpool, but in terms of the overall fit I don’t think it’s a nonsensical story at all.”