“In Istanbul, being so young, he showed his personality.”
Xabi Alonso returns to the European final. The former Real Sociedad, Eibar, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich player will make his debut at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin in these battles as a coach. He will face Bayer Leverkusen against Atalanta to win the Europa League, adding more shine to a season in which he has already won the Bundesliga.
“I’m excited, but my work is still ahead of the finals. Once the ball starts rolling, it’s all up to the players. We have been preparing for this all season. I have a feeling it will be the same as it has been throughout the entire campaign. We respect Atalanta, but we showed what we are capable of. I’m confident we can win,” he said in a preview when he was questioned by MARCA about his first European final as a coach.
I’m excited, but my work is still ahead of the finals. Once the ball starts rolling, it’s all up to the players.
The Second Continental Tournament is one of the few titles that Xabi has not won in an extensive footballing career that has seen him win a World Cup, two European Cups, two Champions Leagues, four leagues, four cups…“My trophies as a player are in the past. Now it’s time to win them as a coach,” Alonso said. who wants to give Leverkusen a second Europa League after the UEFA Cup they achieved in 1988 against Espanyol. Since 2002! They did not participate in the continental final. They were then left without Orejona in Glasgow against Real Madrid. They don’t want to fail in Dublin in 2024.
“My trophies as a player are a thing of the past. Now it’s time to win them over as a coach.”
With Xabi, Bayer turned its history around. If in the 2022/23 season Roma left them without a final, then this season the Giallorossi lost to the intractable Leverkusen. “We took advantage of the second opportunity we had and now we want to win the Europa League,” said Alonso, who already knows what it’s like to taste continental success as a player. With Real Madrid in 2014, he won the Decima, but was unable to play in the final due to suspension.. His run down the flank in a suit after Sergio Ramos’ 93rd-minute 1-1 goal that sent the clash with Atlético Madrid into extra time is an image Madrid fans will remember. “I didn’t think about the consequences. I should have been with them,” he admitted on Real Madrid TV.
“Orejona” was the last one he conquered. The first Champions League went to Liverpool, with whom they played in two finals. The second time (2-1) they lost to Milan at the Olympics in Athens… but the first time they won in 2005 in Istanbul against the Rossoneri themselves. in the fight for the history of football. A title which the Reds won on penalties after losing 3-0 at half-time. However, in the second half they were tied (3-3) in just 16 minutes. And the equalizing goal was scored by Alonso, who made the impossible possible.
“He had never taken a penalty as a professional, but he was very clear about where he was going to take it.. Dida made a great save… but I reacted quickly and took advantage of the rebound. It was as if he had been reborn,” Xabi recalled to the UEFA website. This goal paved the way for Rafa Benitez’s Orejona from Liverpool of Spain.
He had a special character and he showed it by intercepting the ball and converting the penalty. Xabi showed his personality
Two of his comrades in this feat (Josemi and Nunez) remember MARCA. the role that Alonso had then. “He had a special character and he showed it by intercepting the ball and taking the penalty. Gerrard and more experienced players like Hamann were on the pitch, but Xabi shot, scored and showed his character,” says the former Malaga defender. .
He was a very young player at Liverpool and was not called upon to lead the dressing room, but Xabi was important in the team because of the weight he had on the pitch. He was highly respected
“At that time he was a very young player (23 years old), he was not called to lead the dressing room, but he was important in the squad because of the weight he had on the field. Khabi had a lot of respect“, emphasizes the former Real Madrid youth team player. Josemi also appreciates other qualities: “He communicated with everyone thanks to the way he played. It was clear to me that I would be a coach. For him it is something innate. “He was already on the field when he was a football player.”
“Not everyone takes responsibility for penalties. Especially at a decisive moment and in the Champions League final at such a young age.” It was a clear sign of his ability, personality and weight on the field.. He understood the game very well and it was clear that he would become a coach,” explains Nunez. Now on the bench, Alonso wants another European crown.