Bayer’s record hunt is now unimportant
Super coach Xabi Alonso is dreading January
November 10, 2023, 10:09 a.m
The season has been going almost perfectly for Bayer Leverkusen so far. The team around super coach Xabi Alonso can set an incredible Guardiola record against Union Berlin. African players also play a big part in this. Bayer 04 could face a problem in January and February.
Coach Xabi Alonso of Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen does not attach particular importance to the possible setting of Bayern Munich’s record points. “The record is not the most important thing,” said the 41-year-old before the home game against Union Berlin: “We never talk about records, that’s not an issue for us. Our focus is only on how we can improve.”
With a win on Sunday (3:30 p.m./DAZN and in the live ticker on ntv.de) Bayer could get 31 out of 33 possible points after eleven match days. Only Bayern Munich had previously achieved this under Pep Guardiola in the 2015/16 season, when Alonso himself was still actively playing for the record champions. Records are just “the consequence of good work,” emphasized the Spaniard: “It’s better not to focus so much on the record.”
Instead, the concentration must be fully on the home game against the struggling Köpenick team. “The situation at Union is not normal,” said Alonso: “There were a lot of games that they don’t deserve to lose. They are still a very strong team, they don’t allow many shots on goal. We expect a difficult game. We have to Play with quality, control and good energy to win the game.” The use of midfielder Exequiel Palacios is questionable due to knee problems. The long-term injured Patrik Schick (calf), Edmond Tapsoba (hand operation) and Arthur (thigh) will definitely be missing.
The Africa Cup confuses squads
Alonso may face an even bigger problem at Bayer Leverkusen at the start of next year. Five players are at risk of being out for a longer period of time for the Bundesliga club because of the Africa Cup. “It’s a worry for January and February, not having maybe five players,” Alonso said in Baku, Azerbaijan. “It’s a reality. We have to accept it.” Of course he is happy for the players, but for him as a coach the possible failures mean a major weakening.
For the upcoming international break, 24-year-old winger Nathan Tella was called up to the national team of his home country Nigeria for the first time. In addition to Tella, center forward Victor Boniface (also Nigeria), Edmond Tapsoba (Burkina Faso), Odilon Kossounou (Ivory Coast) and Amine Adli (Morocco) are also national players from Africa Cup of Nations participants.
The continental competition will take place from January 13th to February 11th in Ivory Coast. Boniface and the two defenders Tapsoba and Kossounou are regular players under Alonso. The Bundesliga will start playing again on January 12th after the winter break.