The current managers of Bayer Leverkusen and Arsenal started playing together at Basque club Antiguoko. A friendship that still lasts today
– madrid
Last November 29th, Bayer Leverkusen landed in Malmoe, Sweden, to challenge Hacken in the Europa League at the famous local stadium, Ullevi. At the press conference, a local journalist brought two photos to the coach of the German team, the Basque Xabi Alonso. One of a team lined up and another of Xabi Alonso himself in action. They were taken in 1995 right there at Ullevi. “Do you remember?”, “Of course! – the Bayer coach replied enthusiastically – the Gothia Cup! My first international tournament, the first time I played in a big stadium. We traveled by bus from San Sebastian and took two days to arrive, sleeping in Germany. It was a fantastic experience. We had a good team, look who’s here, Mikel Arteta! And we reached the final.”