After 120 years with many more hardships than joys, Bayer Leverkusen is enjoying the best season since its foundation thanks, above all, to Xabi Alonso, a new coach who is experiencing his first full season in the elite. The Tolosarra has buried the Neverkusen nickname that the team had carried since 2002, when it lost the three titles it aspired to, including the Champions League after losing in the final against Real Madrid. More than two decades later, the aspirin team, now mutated into Winnerkusen, a trademark registered yesterday by the German club, returns today to a continental final, this time in the Europa League against Atalanta at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.
Undefeated in 51 games this season, a record number, and champions of the Bundesliga for the first time, Xabi Alonso’s men start as clear favorites to win a trophy that they already lifted in 1988, on that occasion beating Espanyol on penalties. Leverkusen reached the final by epic route, eliminating Qarabag, West Ham and Roma in the semi-finals with goals in the last minutes. The Italian club from Bergamo, which is playing in its first European final and aspiring to its second title after the 1963 Italian Cup, will not be beaten in excitement. Gasperini’s side, always offensive, have already beaten a giant like Liverpool in the quarterfinals, winning with forcefulness at Anfield (0-3), and in the semi-finals they gave Marseille no chance. However, the dea, which has just lost the Cup final against Juventus, faces a challenge that 26 clubs have not achieved this year: beating a Leverkusen that after the event in Dublin will still be able to round off its historic year with another title in the German Cup final against Kaiserslautern.
