Although it was always going to be a tall order for Bayer Leverkusen to even come close to matching their historic achievements of last season, Die Werkself had nevertheless gotten off to a strong start in their return to the Champions League following their Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal triumphs in 2023-24. Leverkusen had started off their tournament with victories over Feyenoord and AC Milan as well as a draw against Brest; however, this most recent matchday was their toughest test to date as they headed to Anfield to play against Premier League leaders Liverpool.
As things turned out, however, Leverkusen ended up being completely outplayed and outclassed. They were steamrolled by their English opponents in a crushing 4-0 loss with all four goals coming in the second half. About midway through the half, Luis Díaz and Cody Gakpo both scored within a two-minute span to give the Reds a two-goal lead. Díaz added his second and Liverpool’s third with seven minutes remaining in regulation time after finishing off Mohamed Salah’s cross. The Colombian winger completed his hat-trick in stoppage time after taking advantage of a Darwin Núñez attempt which happened to be blocked in his direction.
Heading into this season, expectations were understandably sky-high at the BayArena after everything they achieved during their already legendary 2023-24 campaign. Leverkusen won the Bundesliga without losing any matches, becoming the first club to ever win Germany’s domestic league title with an Invincibles season. They also won the DFB-Pokal and made the final of the Europa League.
Adding another storyline to this match was the fact that Xabi Alonso had just missed out on the Ballon d’Or Coach of the Year award after having been beaten to the honour by Carlo Ancelotti of Real Madrid. It was an outcome which many decried given the fact that Alonso accomplished everything which he did with far fewer financial resources to work with in comparison to Ancelotti at Real. In addition, Leverkusen were not expected to finish the season with any silverware at all, let alone completely dominate the Bundesliga and remain undefeated throughout the entire campaign.
Instead, Leverkusen were shown the harsh truth that the Champions League represents a completely different level. Liverpool, a team seasoned by six consecutive seasons in the Champions League before missing out on last season’s, were ready for the occasion while Leverkusen clearly weren’t. In particular, Leverkusen produced next to nothing in the final third and never looked likely to get onto the scoresheet.
In what has become a very rare occurrence, Alonso got his tactical setup completely wrong. Alonso tried to outwit his Liverpool counterpart Arne Slot by deviating from his usual 3-4-2-1 formation, instead going with a 3-5-2 and pairing Victor Boniface and Florian Wirtz up front with the latter in the unfamiliar role of the false nine. It was a sharp reminder to the man from the Basque Country that though it’s more or less been smooth sailing throughout his coaching career to date, errors like that at this level - this is Alonso’s first season in the dugout for a Champions League campaign - can and will be punished.
Leverkusen’s players in general also appeared overmatched and out of their depths. In particular, the likes of Edmond Tapsoba, Jonathan Tah, and even Boniface and veteran midfielder Granit Xhaka were absolutely no match for their counterparts on the Reds. The gap between the two teams was clearly on display; their opposing matchups clearly exhibited their far greater Champions League experience to its maximum effect.
Of course, this result doesn’t spell the end of Leverkusen’s Champions League road by any means. They’re still in a reasonably strong position - they will almost certainly finish in the top 24 where they will have a chance to play for a round of 16 berth; they even have a puncher’s chance of bouncing back, making the top eight, and thereby earning a bye into the last 16. However, the events that just transpired at Anfield show that despite how far they’ve already come, in some ways Leverkusen remain a work in progress.
While in general, Bayer Leverkusen appear primed to back up the success they had last season with another solid campaign, there are nonetheless signs that they might be starting to struggle under the weight of arguably inflated expectations. That being said, if they can clinch qualification for next season’s Champions League while also making this season’s Champions League quarter-finals - certainly a realistic outcome - they can nevertheless consider this season a positive one.
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