Mission title aspirant
Fernando Carro has reacted calmly to other clubs’ interest in Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso. “I am happy to accept that it will arouse desire in other clubs if we are successful,” commented the Bayer boss on Sunday in “Doppelpass” from “Sport1” on the speculation about a future move of the 41-year-old football teacher to an international one Top club.
According to Carro, Alonso is working focused on his mission to turn the Bayer team into title contenders: “He won’t let all this talk upset him. What happens in one, two, three years doesn’t interest him at all at the moment. He’s interested in the now.”
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At the beginning of August, Leverkusen extended Alonso’s contract early for another two years until 2026. In particular, his former club Real Madrid is said to be interested; the Spaniard is considered President Florentino Pérez’s preferred candidate to succeed Carlo Ancelotti, who will take over the Brazilian national team next summer. In addition, there is reportedly a silent agreement that Alonso can set the time for a change himself.
Carro is in good spirits that the team will benefit from the great experience of the former model professional: “He is a coach who has won everything as a player and knows what you need to be successful. He doesn’t just have experience from one league.” Alonso played for Real Sociedad, Liverpool FC, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich and won the Champions League twice (2005/2014) as well as various other titles in three countries. Since the start of his term in October, he has won 21 of 42 games and scored an average of 1.76 points, which only four coaches have bettered in Bayer’s history since promotion to the Bundesliga in 1979.
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