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We Deserves To Win Treble, Says Xabi Alonso
Bayer Leverkusen coach, Xabi Alonso, believes that his team is deserving of all three titles this season as they secured a spot in the Europa League final by defeating AS Roma on Thursday.
Bayer Leverkusen, the Bundesliga champions who have made it to the German Cup final on May 25th, extended their unbeaten streak to 49 matches across all competitions. This achievement surpasses Benfica’s longstanding European record set from 1963 to 1965.
They achieved this milestone by staging a late comeback from a two-goal deficit to secure a 2-2 draw against Roma at home, earning a spot in the final in Dublin on May 22 with a 4-2 aggregate victory.
“We’ll play two finals in a week as a result,” Alonso said. “We showed great character today after their second goal. I looked my players in the eye afterward and saw that they wanted more. We still have the chance to win three titles. And my boys deserve all three titles.”
Bayer Leverkusen had a stroke of luck when Roma defender Gianluca Mancini inadvertently deflected the ball into his net in the 82nd minute. Substitute Josip Stanisic then netted the equalizer right before the final whistle, propelling Leverkusen into the record books. Stanisic described it as one of the most significant moments in his career.
“One of them. We knew what was at stake, we wanted to get to the final and I think you could see that over 90 minutes today,” said Croatia international Stanisic. “I don’t think we would have cared in the end if we lost and still progressed because we wanted to get to the final, but it’s even nicer this way.”
Roma missed out on the opportunity to reach a second consecutive Europa League final, following last season’s loss to Sevilla on penalties, as their hopes slipped away in the final moments of the match.
“When you manage to get it back from 2-0 down and go close to the miracle, knowing nobody has ever beaten them this season, it hurts to see us concede a goal like that. It hurts,” Roma manager Daniele De Rossi told Sky Sports Italia.
