Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso praised his team’s thrilling 4-3 victory over Stuttgart, secured by Patrick Schick’s stoppage-time goal, as a moment that would fuel their pursuit of league leaders Bayern Munich, now just six points ahead with eight games remaining. This win, following Leverkusen’s unbeaten title win last season, boosted team morale, with Alonso highlighting its significance and energy for the final stretch of the season. Centre-back Jonathan Tah noted the importance of such dramatic wins to maintain team spirit. Alonso emphasized focusing on game-by-game progress as they aim to close the gap in the Bundesliga title race.
Bayer Leverkusen’s coach, Xabi Alonso, remarked that the thrilling 4-3 victory over Stuttgart on Sunday would motivate his team as they aim to close the gap on league leaders Bayern Munich. Patrick Schick netted a goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time, marking Leverkusen’s first lead in the match. This win narrowed the defending champions’ deficit to six points behind Bayern, who played to a 1-1 draw against Union Berlin on Saturday, with eight matches remaining in the season. After leading Leverkusen to their inaugural Bundesliga title in 2023-24, Alonso emphasized that the dramatic triumph against Stuttgart, last season’s runners-up, would propel his team forward.
“In the end, this magical moment occurred for us,” Alonso told DAZN, noting that “it signifies a lot, to experience this wonderful feeling.”
“We’ll harness this positive atmosphere and energy as we move into the final stretch of the season. Every player believed — it’s unquestionably a crucial win for us.”
Following Schick’s goal, Alonso sprinted onto the pitch, where he hugged the Czech forward as the Leverkusen bench celebrated.
Leverkusen ended Bayern’s 11-year title dominance last season by making history as the first team in Germany to secure a league championship without a single defeat.
Despite Bayern removing Leverkusen from the Champions League in the last 16 earlier in the week, Alonso asserted that this victory demonstrated that his team was far from finished.
“We’ll see,” Alonso commented on the title race. “There are eight matches left in the Bundesliga. Many things can unfold.”
“We need to focus on one game at a time, one win at a time. It’s not solely in our control; we have to wait, but today was significant.”
“The determination and desire to compete in every match are definitely present.”
Leverkusen’s centre-back, Jonathan Tah, stated that his team “refused to give up, we held on until the final whistle, and sometimes you need victories like this to demonstrate that the spirit remains strong.”
“We are striving to gather all our points — we will find out at the end whether it will be sufficient.”
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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