Congratulations to Bayer Leverkusen and Xavi Alonso, the first title of the season in Europe's top five leagues!
On April 14, local time, in a pre-noisy game in the Bundesliga, Leverkusen only needed to defeat Bremen to win the championship. The pharmaceutical factory also lived up to expectations, easily swept Bremen 5-0, and Wirtz scored a hat-trick to win the Bundesliga title five rounds ahead of schedule.
This is the earliest league title winner in Europe's top five leagues this season. Normally, this role is usually held by Bayern Munich or Grand Paris.
It was a historic title, as Bayer Leverkusen's best record in the Bundesliga in their 120-year history was five runners-up finishes (1996-97, 1998-99, 1999-2000, 2001-02 and 2010-11), but they never touched the salad plate.
German coaches such as Daum, Topmüller, and Heynckes have all led the team one step away from the championship, while Kirsten, Ballack, Ramirao, Schneider and other famous players have never won the championship with the team.
Due to the failure to win many championships, including the rare Sanya King in the 2001-02 season (Champions League, Bundesliga, German Cup), the pharmaceutical company was even given a slightly mocking nickname "Neverkusen".
But last night, Marcos Alonso and his players finally fulfilled the long-cherished wish of Bayer Leverkusen, who are no longer the second in 10,000 years, and are as many as 16 points ahead of defending champions Bayern Munich to become the new king.
After winning the championship this season, Bayer Leverkusen also broke the 11-year monopoly of the "Southern King" Bayern on the Bundesliga title, and the last time the Bundesliga was not Bayern's championship season was Dortmund led by Klopp in the 2011-12 season.
While the pharmaceutical company ended the curse of 120 years and 0 championships, Bayern's side, new signing Kane continued to taste the bitterness of his career without a championship. After joining from Tottenham Hotspur last summer, Bayern missed the German Super Cup and the German Cup in a row, and Kane has one more title that he is sure to miss.
This season, Kane scored 39 goals and provided 12 assists in 39 games in all competitions, basically winning the Bundesliga Golden Boot and the European Golden Boot, but the crazy efficiency still failed to bring championship glory, and Bayern only have the Champions League title to compete for.
But the real responsibility for Bayern's loss of the title is obviously not on Kane, and we are at most ridiculing it from some metaphysical perspective.
The fact is that Bayer Leverkusen's championship form is impressive enough - so far this season, the pharmaceutical league is unbeaten in 29 games, with 25 wins and 4 draws to get 79 points, which has exceeded the final points of the champions in many seasons in 34 games. Moreover, the pharmaceutical company is unbeaten in 43 games in all competitions, with 38 wins and 5 draws, and an incredible 123 goals.
In terms of merit and reward, if you want to talk about the hero of the championship, there is no doubt that it must be coach Xavi Alonso.
Alonso was an excellent midfielder when he was a player, and he was a pivotal and trusted role for both the Spanish national team and the club.
As a Academy graduate of Real Sociedad, he made his debut with his parent club and joined Liverpool in the Premier League after playing for many years, and was also a key participant in the 05 Istanbul Miracle. Later, Brother Long also played for Real Madrid and Bayern, and the simple summary is: "I have joined the army in the society, and I have joined the royal family and finally become a benevolent." ”
By the time he retired in 2017 at the age of 36, Alonso's career as a player was almost complete, winning 1 World Cup, 2 European Cups, 2 Champions Leagues, and more importantly, he had heard and witnessed under Pep Guardiola, Carlo Ancelotti, Mourinho, Benitez, Aragonés, Bosque and other famous coaches.
In August 2018, Alonso made his debut as the head coach of Real Madrid's youth team, and in 2019, he took charge of Real Sociedad B, staying for three years, and getting a valuable opportunity to develop as a rookie coach.
In October 2022, Alonso officially stepped down to take over as Bayer Leverkusen manager, making his first professional club in charge. The pharmaceutical company, which was fighting for relegation at the time, started second from bottom with one win, two draws and five defeats, and Alonso took the team to sixth place at the end of the season and reached the semi-finals of the Europa League.
What happened this season has been widely known, and Brother Meow will no longer spend more time on it.
Bayer Leverkusen will not stop after breaking a 120-year drought of zero league titles, and they will be competing for two titles this season: the German Cup has reached the final against Kaiserslautern and the Europa League quarter-final has led West Ham 2-0 in the first leg to replace Liverpool as the favourites to win the tournament.
That said, Bayer Leverkusen could also achieve a treble this year. What's even more commendable is that Brother Long has announced that he will continue to stay in the team next season, which is not only responsible for the team, but also responsible for himself. There is nothing more sober in the world than this. The 42-year-old Alonso is destined to make history at Bayer Leverkusen and create an era of his own.