2024-05-24 02:18:27
The German document champions are about to rent a brand new coach. Criticism of Vincent Kompany is misplaced – as a result of a star coach took the same path, says Stefan Effenberg.
I’ve not often seen a remaining during which there was a extra deserving winner than on this Europa League remaining on Wednesday. As a result of Atalanta Bergamo is a fully worthy champion. And I’ve to be sincere: I used to be not solely stunned but in addition disenchanted by Bayer Leverkusen after the 0-3 defeat in Dublin. I merely anticipated much more.
This was not the Bayer Leverkusen that we now have identified thus far this season. Many individuals thought that Atalanta Bergamo can be a sure-fire success – however they forgot that coach Gian Piero Gasperini’s workforce had already clearly crushed Liverpool FC and Olympique Marseille within the earlier rounds. You’ve got to have the ability to try this first. And towards this uncomfortable workforce, Leverkusen couldn’t reproduce for a single minute of the ultimate what that they had proven so typically this season, within the 51 earlier video games.
I need to additionally say that I used to be a little bit confused by Xabi Alonso’s line-up. Rotating like that in such an essential sport stunned me. Alonso has carried out that many occasions previously season – and all the time efficiently – however sooner or later it simply would not work out so completely. It is only a disgrace that it occurred yesterday.
Bayer merely lacked that striker up entrance, of which that they had two on the bench. Alonso wished to play extra quick, which regularly labored. However towards an Italian workforce like that you just additionally want excessive robustness. As a result of Bergamo was bodily the strongest workforce within the Europa League. And Florian Wirtz and Leverkusen’s different attacking forces like Jeremie Frimpong and Amine Adli, who’ve typically made the distinction thus far, had been nowhere to be seen.
Leverkusen did not get away with this finesse and creativity towards Atalanta. When you do not have a single actual probability to attain in 90 minutes, and also you’re probably the most harmful workforce within the Bundesliga, that was simply too skinny.
Possibly it is simpler this manner
I used to be not stunned that the gamers, together with coach Alonso and managing director Fernando Carro, appeared so composed of their reactions after the sport (learn extra about that right here) – as a result of the state of affairs didn’t permit for anything. The following decisive sport is on Saturday, the DFB Cup remaining. These are psychological video games for Leverkusen, and that is proper. They can not go into an in depth evaluation now, they only must rapidly put this defeat behind them – even when that clearly hurts so much.
Bayer could have virtually made themselves immortal by means of this season, but when that they had additionally gained a title in Europe for the primary time since 1988, and undefeated at that, they’d have really gone down in historical past.
Now we now have to look again on a defeat that was completely deserved, even in its severity. My principle: Possibly it is even simpler this manner than if the sport had been on a knife edge till the final second. I say this from my very own expertise: within the Champions League remaining towards Bayern in 1999, we already had one and a half fingers on the trophy – and nonetheless misplaced the sport. And what occurred just a few days later? Then we additionally misplaced the DFB Cup remaining towards Werder Bremen. That exhibits what a defeat like that may do to gamers.
In fact, Leverkusen are nonetheless the favorites to play towards 1. FC Kaiserslautern in Berlin on Saturday. However regardless of all of the psychology, the 0-3 defeat might nonetheless be within the gamers’ minds. They’re within the subsequent remaining, this time towards an actual underdog – however they don’t have anything to lose. Lautern’s coach Friedhelm Funkel could have seen it too: you need to put a participant on Granit Xhaka’s toes, and you need to put a participant on Wirtz’s toes. They must get the sensation that they aren’t within the sport, that they can not dictate the rhythm. Bergamo managed that, and Funkel could have acknowledged that.