As of: March 30, 2024, 7:47 a.m
By: Luca Hartmann
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The decision about the future of Xabi Alonso has been made. The Spaniard will remain coach of Bayer Leverkusen next season.
Update from March 29th, 2:02 p.m.:
Now the decision has finally been made: Xabi Alonso will remain the coach of Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen in the coming season! At midday, the Spaniard announced his stay with the Werkself at the press conference before the upcoming game against Hoffenheim.
“We've had so many games so far and I wanted some time to reflect on that. I used the international break for this. We had a very good conversation last week, after which I decided to continue as coach of Bayer Leverkusen. I feel that it is the right place for me. I also feel that my job here is not over yet. If you put it all together, it justifies my decision,” Alonso explained the reasons for his stay.
Media reports: Alonso stays in Leverkusen
First report from March 29th, 12:02 p.m.:
Leverkusen – Stay in Leverkusen or move to one of the top clubs FC Bayern or FC Liverpool? The decision about Xabi Alonso's coaching future has apparently been made!
For weeks there has been speculation about the 42-year-old, who has made Bayer Leverkusen a contender for the title this season. This should be over now. According to consistent media reports from
Bild
,
Kicker
and
Sky,
among others,
Alonso will announce his stay with the Werkself at the press conference today (2 p.m.) before the game against Hoffenheim!
Xabi Alonso will probably remain coach at Leverkusen. © Tom Weller/dpa
Decision made: Alonso will probably remain coach in Leverkusen
This means that FC Bayern would come away empty-handed with their supposed ideal candidate to succeed Thomas Tuchel. However, this does not come as a surprise:
tz
reported in February that Alonso was not interested in moving to Munich. Uli Hoeneß also recently emphasized that signing the Spaniard would be “probably impossible”.
Now the decision has finally been made against FC Bayern and other interested parties such as Liverpool FC. Alonso will definitely remain Bayer Leverkusen's coach next season, according to consistent media reports. New speculation could then arise next summer. According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Alonso has an exit clause from 2025 in his contract, which runs until 2026.
Alonso is shaping Leverkusen into title candidates
But first the Spaniard wants to continue writing the success story with Bayer. In October 2022, Alonso took over Leverkusen in the middle of a crisis in a relegation zone and from then on shaped it into a top team. In the same season, Alonso led the Werkself to sixth place in the league and thus into international business. In the Europa League they only narrowly failed in the semi-finals against AS Roma.
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The big breakthrough finally followed this season. In the Bundesliga, Leverkusen is already within ten points of its first pursuer Bayern (as of March 29) and could celebrate the first championship title in the club's history. The Werkself are also still unbeaten in the DFB Cup (semi-finals) and the Europa League (quarter-finals) - so even the treble is currently possible.
The search for a new head coach at FC Bayern continues. In the event of Alonso's rejection, the people of Munich are already working on a plan B. (LuHa)