Bayer Leverkusen has the opportunity, from Sunday, to grill Bayern Munich, winner of the last eleven editions of the German championship. All he needs is one victory to be certain of never being caught, and may even have the opportunity to break a few records.
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Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen will have the opportunity on Sunday April 14 (5:30 p.m.), in its BayArena, to win the first German championship title in its history. The culmination of a season waged at a hundred miles an hour on all fronts and which brought Bayern Munich to the ground. Last season, Borussia Dortmund were only allowed one cartridge, on the last day. He had sent it well above the stand of his Westfalenstadion, forced into a draw by Mainz (2-2) and obliged to leave an eleventh consecutive title to Bayern in a disaster scenario.
Also listenBayer Leverkusen, on the royal road in the Bundesliga
This year, Bayer Leverkusen has six title balls. The first under the eyes of its 30,210 supporters at the BayArena, against Werder Bremen almost assured of its continuation in the Bundesliga (31 points, eight ahead of 16th place in the play-off), against whom a victory would be enough to win the trophy. Because Xabi Alonso’s men have a nice cushion of 16 points ahead of Bayern and Stuttgart six days before the end of the season, on which they can sleep peacefully. Nothing to do with BVB’s two points last season before the last day.
“ We have 90 minutes to achieve something very special », recognized the Spanish technician, who decided to stay next season despite calls from prestigious clubs like Liverpool and… Bayern Munich. His men could even already celebrate the club’s first coronation in 120 years of existence on Saturday, in the event of defeats for Bayern at home against relegated Cologne and Stuttgart, also at home against Frankfurt.
Imitate Juve and Arsenal
Leverkusen’s excellence since mid-August can be summed up in one number: in 42 matches played in all competitions, Lukas Hradecky’s teammates have never lost (37 wins, five draws), a record series in progress for a club German. As it enters the decisive weeks of April and May, Leverkusen is still able to add three lines to its list of achievements: the championship, the Cup (with a final to be played against Kaiserslautern on May 25) and the Europa League (a quarter-final against West Ham, 2-0 first leg victory).
In the history of the Bundesliga, only Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich, in its 2013/14 version, did better after 28 days (78 points against 76 for Leverkusen). Jupp Heynckes’ Bayern record 2012/13 season with 91 points even seems attainable. And Leverkusen can still become the first German club to complete a league season without defeat. In the top 5 European championships since 1945, only Perugia (30 matches in 1978/79, 2nd at the end of the season), AC Milan (1991/92), Juventus Turin (2011/12) and Arsenal ( 2003/04), achieved such a feat.
A dominating course which is reminiscent of those of Bayern Munich, who blew up their opponents one by one by leading a beating rhythm. Only, this season, it is the Munich residents who have run out of steam, let go in February like a marathon runner stuck on the 30 kilometer wall. This craving caused the Bayern house to sway and the leaders opted for a solution between two waters: maintaining coach Thomas Tuchel and anticipating the end of his contract in the summer of 2024.