Although his coaching career is not much, but this former player is emerging as the most watched star in the steering cabins at the number one tournament in Germany!
Just a month ago, the ghosts of the dark times under coach Gerardo Seoane reappeared with Leverkusen. This team lost with the same score 2-3 to Monaco in the Europa League and Mainz in the Bundesliga. A disappointing season awaits them!
But time passed not long ago, Die Werkself made a dizzying transformation. The team won the last 6/7 matches, overcame Monaco and also won Ferencvaros to advance to the quarter-finals of the Europa League. Then with the latest comeback 2-1 against Bayern, Xabi Alonso’s team close to 7th place in the Bundesliga table with a gap of 1 point.
Remember, when Alonso took office in October 2022, Leverkusen was 17th. Before and after the winter break, they won 5 games in a row. And now, this team is even more stable, no longer relying on luck and individual performances.
Midfielder Robert Andrich said cheerfully after the victory over Bayern: “A great performance for more than 90 minutes! We controlled the game, played passionate, passionate football and deserved the three points!” It should be known that this guy is the nucleus for this boom. About the turning point before the game, the 28-year-old midfielder shared: “After a nap, I received a text from the head coach: Rob, you will play libero again today! Until then, I still didn’t know if I was dreaming or awake.”
But it was all in Alonso’s calculations. Previously, this central midfielder played in a three-man defense in a 1-1 draw with Freiburg. But against Bayern, this was an active layout. Because Alonso wants Andrich to move flexibly between defense and midfield, creating many passing options for teammates.
“The idea here is that he wants the team to move the ball more smoothly from home because a ‘6’ always has a different sense of space,” emphasized Andrich, “We surprised Bayern. in the first half and they took a long time to find a countermeasure.”
In the first 20 minutes, Leverkusen held the ball to 66%. The bewildered face of a tactical genius like Nagelsmann is the greatest tribute to Alonso’s invention. But the most commendable thing is that when Bayern suddenly took the lead in the 22nd minute, Die Werkself still followed the direction of the head coach to create a spectacular comeback in the second half.
Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said happily: “The opponent changed tactics after 20 minutes, but we were flexible enough to adapt. Andrich played brilliantly in a three-man defense, but also turned into a “six” midfielder when needed. Bayern have never had a complete advantage in midfield. That’s how we don’t let the defending champion play football. A top-notch strategy from… Xabi!”.
But above all, Alonso’s biggest mark was building a true team in the Leverkusen dressing room, something that was not seen before. After each game, Alonso repeated the phrases “unity”, “a team” or “together”. “He put the fire in the right way during the break,” recalls striker Amine Adli, “We always walked into the pitch feeling it was going to make a difference! The whole team stood together, attacked together, defended together and won together…”.
Impressive win rate
After 17 matches in the Bundesliga, coach Xabi Alonso helped Leverkusen win 10, draw 2 and lose 5. With 32 points won, this is the team with the 4th best record in the same period, just behind RB Leipzig, Dortmund and … Bavaria. The average score that the Spaniard brings home is 1.88 points/match.
