Everyone wants to beat Leverkusen, says Alonso
Bayer Leverkusen have their sights set on stretching their extraordinary 47-match unbeaten run this season but it will no easy task, manager Xabi Alonso said on Friday.
The newly-crowned Bundesliga champions moved a step closer to a treble after beating AS Roma 2-0 away in their Europa League semi-final first leg on Thursday and they have reached the German Cup final against Kaiserslautern.
Leverkusen, who ended Bayern Munich’s 11-year stranglehold on the Bundesliga title to secure their first trophy since 1993, travel to sixth-placed Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.
“We want to stay unbeaten and we know every week it gets tougher. Everyone wants to beat us,” Alonso told reporters.
“It hasn’t been easy in Frankfurt in recent years, it’s always a tough opponent with a flexible system of play. We don’t have much time to prepare.”
The 42-year-old Spaniard will be watching the Frankfurt game from the stands after receiving his fourth yellow card of the season during his side’s 2-2 home draw with VfB Stuttgart last week.
“You can see the game better from the stands and I can communicate with the bench,” he said. “I will miss the direct contact with the team during the game but the players are intelligent enough to decide situations individually on the pitch.”
