Xabi Alonso: Bayer Leverkusen Still Have Work To Do Against Roma

Bayern Leverkusen players were highly motivated and delivered their best to secure a 2-0 victory against AS Roma in the Europa League semi-finals on Thursday. However, coach Xabi Alonso emphasized the importance of remaining cautious as they look ahead to the return leg.

Florian Wirtz and Robert Andrich scored to give the recently crowned Bundesliga champions a two-goal lead against last season’s runners-up Roma, further extending their unbeaten streak to 47 matches across all competitions.

“We made good transitions once they were open and we had enough spaces, the commitment and the discipline from the players have been fantastic,” Alonso said. “But there is still a game to play. We have used that system before, especially because we have players who can play different roles … Today the game plan was quite clear, and we performed at a very high level.”

He stated, “We could have scored more. But to be fair, they could have scored as well. The result could have been a little bit different, but it’s fair enough. It was not difficult to motivate the players.”

Bayer Leverkusen secured their first victory against Roma in nearly two decades by defeating the Italian capital side 3-1 at home in October 2004 during the Champions League group stage. Before this win, they had gone without a victory in five consecutive matches against Roma.

“It was a serious and careful match, we were smart and mature. They had their chances, the lead gave us more confidence to do our things in possession and non-possession,” Alonso added. “Up front, we have fast players. In the second half, we did not concede anything – we knew if we were careful and solid, we would then have our chances. The team found the right compromise.

He continued, “2-0 is a good result, we go home happy but cautious. What we are doing in this season is outstanding. We have quality players with a very high level of focus, the most difficult thing is to be consistent. We don’t want to stop – we want to go on like this until the end of the season.”