Alonso: We have to learn from the big loss to Liverpool
Xabi Alonso, coach of the German football team Bayer Leverkusen, said that his team will learn from the huge 0-4 loss that the team suffered against Liverpool in the Champions League, and pointed out that Anfield Stadium played an influential role in his team’s collapse in the second half.
Leverkusen, the German League (Bundesliga) champion, kept a clean sheet in the first half of the match held yesterday, Tuesday, but Liverpool managed to score four goals, including three goals (hat-tricks) by Luis Diaz in the second half.
Liverpool, led by its coach, Arnie Slott, received great support from the fans, and Alonso, who was a Liverpool player from 2004 to 2009, said that the player “felt” the unique atmosphere at Anfield.
Alonso said of the additional support Liverpool received: “It is much more difficult to describe it in words than what you feel on the field. We tried to prepare for that.”
He added: “The second half was not good enough on our part, compared to the first half.”
He added: “In order to win against the big teams, you must overcome difficult moments and suffer. We must learn and learn to enjoy those moments and seize the opportunity.”
Leverkusen midfielder Granit Xhaka said that they conceded easy goals, but he stressed: “We knew that Liverpool could not be controlled, and that we could not control them for 90 minutes.”
This was the second match in a row in which Leverkusen failed to score any goals after drawing 0-0 with Stuttgart last Friday in the Bundesliga, where they are seven points away from the top.
In the Champions League, Leverkusen is five points behind Liverpool, the leaders, with half of the league stage matches having passed, after suffering their first loss in the tournament.
The first eight teams out of the 36 teams qualify directly for the round of 16, and Alonso said: “In general, we are in a good position after obtaining seven points, and with upcoming matches.”
He added: “We are not happy today, but tomorrow we will think about the next match. We have time to analyze the good and negative aspects of the match.”
Leverkusen will visit Bochum in the Bundesliga next Saturday, while it will face Austria’s Salzburg on November 26 in the Champions League.
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