“It is the right place for me as a coach,” said Xabi Alonso with conviction at the press conference on Friday before Bayer Leverkusen's match against TSG Hoffenheim. So quiet Leverkusen is the right place for the worldly man Alonso.
The place where the Spanish people He formed a team into a possible championship team and thus upset the entire league, especially Bayern. In a few weeks the team and the 42-year-old could be crowned with the championship. And the DFB Cup. And possibly also the title in the Europe League. But he shouldn't end up at Bayer Cross either.
Alonso remains faithful to his path! Good for the Bundesliga, bad for Bayern
However, Bayern's superiors had this idea. They wanted to bring in their former player to start a new era of success after Thomas Tuchel. Bring in a coach who can play exciting and successful football and who has already had a successful playing career at Säbener Straße.
Liverpool FC may have already approached their former player, as Jürgen Klopp's successor. They did the math without Alonso. Because the Spaniard is thinking carefully about his next professional steps.
“This season is my first full season as a coach. “I also have to continue learning a lot,” highlighted the man who became world and European champion as an active player. To learn, Alonso deliberately started at the bottom of the coaching career after his active time.
Alonso remains faithful to his career as a coach
The Spaniard initially coached Real Madrid's youth C team (2018/19) before taking charge of his hometown Real Sociedad second team for three years. He didn't go directly to a big club, but he chose this path. Step by step, do not take several steps at once. When Alonso finally arrived at Leverkusen in October 2022, his starting position was anything but rosy.
The former world-class player took charge of the Rhineland in 17th place; We know what happened in the last year and a half. However, Alonso's story is still untold in Leverkusen. He would like to continue developing the team next season, hear the Champions League anthem for the first time as a coach and, of course, once again have an important voice in the championship.
At Bayer Leverkusen, which is not the focus of the media world, Alonso was able to continue maturing as a coach and take the next steps. The move to a top-level club could only come in one or two years, when he has gained more experience and feels prepared. This is bad news for Bayern. Because the 2005 Champions League winner will do everything possible to keep Leverkusen ahead of Bayern.