On Saturday, Leverkusen beat Augsburg and have now gone undefeated in the entire Bundesliga season, a first in the German league. “We played well in most of the games and in the ones where we didn’t play well, we didn’t give up. That says a lot about how much effort the team is showing,” said coach Xabi Alonso in a UEFA interview.
The club has not yet lost in the Europa League either; in the knockout round, Leverkusen eliminated Karabakh Agdam, West Ham United and AS Roma. However, Alonso expects a difficult game against Atalanta: “It will be an intense game against a very demanding opponent with a clear game idea, with a coach who has been there for a long time and players who have played together for many years and know each other well.”
Leverkusen are chasing the title in the Europa League
Bayer Leverkusen are aiming to secure their first international title since 1988 in the Europa League final against Atalanta Bergamo in Dublin on Wednesday. The German champions are already unbeaten in 51 competitive matches.
In fact, Gian Piero Gasperini has been on the sidelines of the Bergamasco team since 2016, but he has not yet won a trophy. Last week, the team lost the final of the Italian Cup against Juventus Turin. “I don’t think that winning titles is always part of the parameters by which success is measured. But if we win a trophy, then we are even happier,” the 66-year-old told UEFA.
Reuters/Thilo Schmuelgen For Alonso it is the first final in his coaching career
“We played great games”
The Italians’ Europa League season has been extremely successful. In the group phase they celebrated a victory against Sturm Graz, among others, and in the knockout games they eliminated Sporting Lisbon, Liverpool and Olympique Marseille, with the 3-0 away victory over the “Reds” in England leaving a lasting impression. “From the start of the group phase we were not the favourites. But we played great games against strong opponents. Of course the victory in Anfield has further boosted our self-confidence,” said Gasperini.
Reuters/Daniele Mascolo Gianluca Scamacca is Atalanta’s top scorer with six goals in the Europa League
Leverkusen and Atalanta met in the round of 16 of the Europa League in the 2021/22 season, when the Italians won both games. “It’s an opponent we know well. Nothing new. But we are a different team now,” said Alonso, who was not yet under contract with Leverkusen at the time, but who analyzed the games in detail before this year’s final.
Leverkusen without injury worries
The Spaniard will have the entire squad at his disposal on Wednesday, and Florian Wirtz, who has recently been injured, is also “in top shape” according to sporting director Simon Rolfes. Gasperini, on the other hand, will have to do without key players Marten de Roon and Sead Kolasinac. After the final, Leverkusen has another chance to win the title on Saturday in the DFB Cup final against Kaiserslautern, while for Atalanta the Europa League this season is their last chance to win a trophy for the first time since the Italian Cup in 1963.
