Xabi Alonso has officially confirmed that he will be leaving Bayer Leverkusen at the end of the current 2024/25 season. The Spanish manager hasn’t announced his next destination, but it’s widely expected to be Real Madrid, with the 43-year-old expected to take over from veteran Carlo Ancelotti at the Bernabeu.
Alonso joined Leverkusen as manager back in 2022 and guided them to an historic maiden Bundesliga title in 2023/24. He also set a new European club record for matches without a defeat- a whopping 51-game-streak that was eventually ended in that season’s Europa League final by Atalanta.
At the end of that successful campaign, Alonso attracted attention from the likes of Liverpool, Bayern and Real Madrid, but announced that he would serve out the rest of his Leverkusen contract till 2026.
Liverpool and Bayern then went on to appoint Arne Slot and Vincent Kompany respectively, and Bayern not only managed to wrest the Bundesliga title back from Leverkusen but also eliminated them in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
Alonso’s last two games in charge of Leverkusen are a home fixture against Borussia Dortmund this weekend, followed by a trip to Mainz on the final day of the campaign.
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