Having lifted the Meisterschale on Sunday, Xabi Alonso now turns his attention to Wednesday’s UEFA Europa League final. His Bayer Leverkusen side will look to edge one step nearer to a completely unbeaten season, with just the DFB-Pokal final remaining on Saturday.
Ahead of an 8pm kickoff at the Dublin Arena, the Spaniard addressed the media in his pre-match press conference, where he was accompanied by Jonathan Tah and Granit Xhaka.
Begrudgingly, the 42-year-old manager admitted that his job “is prior to the game,” and went on to add that “once the ball is rolling, it’s time for the players.”
He stressed that his Leverkusen side have “prepared for this moment all through the year – it’s not just a two-day job. Luckily, I have a great team and I have players that are ready.”
Embed from Getty Images“They’re well prepared for tomorrow and we’ve shown that during the whole year. Tomorrow, I have a good feeling that it’s not going to be any different. We respect so much Atalanta, but we have confidence that it’s not going to change.”
“We know that over the last five years, Atalanta have had a very clear identity under Gian Piero Gasperini. The players know exactly what they want and need to do on the pitch, they’ve had success both domestically and in Europe.”
“We’re very familiar with this team, but this is a team which continues to progress and evolve. Occasionally, they sit back a bit more – they’re not always gung-ho and pressing very high.”
Squad selection was a key topic of discussion throughout the press conference, with the media particularly keen to hear who would be starting between the sticks when the German champions take to the pitch.
“Tomorrow, Matej [Kovár],” Xabi Alonso explained, adding that “we’ll see” about who gets the starting berth for Saturday’s DFB-Pokal final against Kaiserslautern.