The Bayer Leverkusen manager believes that the Europa League loss to Atalanta will help him improve as a coach.

Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso believes that his team’s defeat in the UEFA Europa League final will ultimately make him a better manager. Despite ending the Bundesliga campaign unbeaten and securing their first ever German league title, Leverkusen missed out on a historic unbeaten season when they lost 3-0 to Atalanta in the final. However, they bounced back to defeat Kaiserslautern in the DFB Pokal three days later.

Speaking to CNN, Alonso expressed his belief that his team was on the right path from the early stages of the season. He admitted that he was not initially optimistic about fighting until the last week, but he had a good feeling that they could have a successful season. The Spaniard also mentioned that the goal for this year was to make the Champions League, and the unbeaten run was not the main focus for the team.

Alonso acknowledged that the defeat in the final lingered with him, but he believed that it would make him a better coach and manager. He stated that dealing with defeat is part of the job and that he has the intuition that the game against Atalanta will be more useful for his development than winning the treble.

Despite the disappointment, he expressed pride in his team’s achievements and emphasized the importance of reflecting and analyzing properly for the future.

Regarding potential talks to return to Liverpool as a manager, Alonso remained tight-lipped and stated that those decisions need to be thoroughly thought out. He mentioned his bond with Liverpool and stated that there are no issues with that. He concluded by saying that any potential talks about returning to Anfield are behind the curtains.