Former Bayer Leverkusen sporting director Reiner Calmund once said: "In a brutal and unforgivable football world, you are of no value without a title." That is the statement that accurately summarizes the painful past of the BayArena team.
In the first 6 Bundesliga seasons of this century, Leverkusen have finished second four times. In 2000, they dropped the title despite only needing a draw in the penultimate round against SpVgg Unterhaching. Two years later, Leverkusen continued to lose two of their final three games to award the title to Dortmund.
The regret was compounded for Leverkusen in the 2001-2002 season. A week after the Bundesliga defeat, they suffered a 2-4 loss to Schalke in the BundesB-Pokal final. 4 days later, Leverkusen were defeated by Real Madrid in the Champions League final.
Leverkusen finished second in the Bundesliga in 2010-2011, for the fifth time in the club's history, despite no serious collapse. However, the nickname "Neverkusen" has always existed and become a part of their culture.
Leverkusen has continuously trained world-class players, but success has always turned its back on them. "Quality is always there at Leverkusen, but there is always something missing," said former German international Michael Ballack in an interview with 11 fre freunde.
And it turns out that what Leverkusen lacks is Xabi Alonso, who has just led them to the first Bundesliga championship in the club's history.
On the day Xabi Alonso ended his illustrious playing career, Pep Guardiola lamented the loss of "one of the best midfielders". However, the Bayern Munich coach at that time also made a notable comment: "Alonso will soon return as manager and no matter where he goes, I bet he will be very good".
However, Alonso not only met Guardiola's expectations but also surpassed them. When asked about Alonso's success at BayArena, the Manchester City coach just smiled and exclaimed "ach! ".
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp has called Alonso a "ost prominent" in the new generation of strategists. That is why Liverpool have tried so hard to convince the Spanish coach to succeed Klopp at Anfield. In addition, the "Gray Tigers" also want Alonso to go to the Allianz Arena to replace the departing Thomas Tuchel.
And it should be remembered that Leverkusen's appointment of Alonso in October 2022 was once widely doubted.
"We are in a difficult situation and we see Xabi Alonso's talent. But he is an inexperienced coach who has never led a top team. However, I was convinced by his ability from the start and Alonso was also convinced by the quality of our squad," said Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes.
While Leverkusen's potential is clear after a spectacular escape at the end of the 2022-23 season, Alonso knows the team still needs to upgrade. After that, the Spanish "captain" created a team with experienced players and enthusiastic young stars.
Alonso welcomed Granit Xhaka back from Arsenal, and added veteran winger Jonas Hoffman from Hoffenheim. In addition, there is Alex Grimaldo, who has had 7 successful seasons at Benfica. And most importantly, Victor Boniface from Union Saint-Gilloise will appear in attack.
In total, Leverkusen have spent €90 million on new players, but their net loss is just €20 million after selling Moussa Diaby to Aston Villa.
And almost every Leverkusen contract under Alonso has been impressive. The main proof is that Alonso's team prevented Bayern Munich from winning the Bundesliga for the 12th consecutive time. The curse has been broken, Leverkusen now have one title: Bundesliga champion 2023-2024. And this will last forever!
