Leverkusen in trouble finding suitable spot to celebrate
Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso seemed lost in a wave of emotions coming by surprise and struggled to find the right words.
"It comes early and as a surprise at that stage. I expected this a little bit later," the Spaniard said after receiving the message that his side is only one game away from the Bundesliga title due to Bayern Munich's unexpected defeat in Heidenheim.
Every fan is making an effort to be around when the club has the chance to win its first national title and end an over-decade-long dominance of Bayern.
Celebration preparations in the arena and the ones run by the city council must be made at high speed.
The city hall is located amidst a big shopping center, somehow hidden between mobile phone shops and supermarkets, without the usual balcony, club, and city council puzzle over an appropriate sport.
To beat Werder Bremen at home next Saturday seems like a piece of cake for Alonso, and the two-time UEFA Champions League winner talked about the Bundesliga title for the first time.
"It's close, but it's not over yet," Alonso said.
"We want to achieve the biggest possible success like any other team," he added.
The league title is not the only opportunity for Leverkusen to win silverware, and Alonso seems aware of the team's situation.
Never having won the national league title and achieving it early in the season might dominate the players' minds, ahead of their German Cup final and the remaining matches in the UEFA Europa League, with Premier League side West Ham awaiting them in the quarterfinal next Thursday.
"We don't want to celebrate too early," Alonso said after his team had won 41 matches this season.
Leverkusen midfielder Granit Xhaka seems to adopt his coach's perspective, saying, "We have reached several intermediate goals, but there are several tasks to solve ahead."
"We might be in a fantastic position, and we can realistically talk about titles, but we need to keep the finish line in mind, that strategy made us successful. So why leaving that path?" he added.
Xhaka reminds his side that "no team is unbeatable, so are we. Sometimes it's only a game that changes everything."