Record-Breaking Leverkusen Hungry For More
In a history-making night for the German champions, Bayer Leverkusen advanced to the Europa League final after a dramatic 2-2 draw against AS Roma, securing a 4-2 aggregate victory. The result marked Leverkusen’s 49th consecutive match without defeat across all competitions, breaking Benfica’s European record set between 1963 and 1965. Coach Xabi Alonso lauded his team’s resilience and ambition, declaring that they deserve all three titles available to them this season.
Leverkusen, who have already clinched the Bundesliga and reached the German Cup final on May 25, found themselves two goals down against Roma before mounting a thrilling comeback. An own goal by Roma defender Gianluca Mancini in the 82nd minute provided a lifeline for the German champions, and substitute Josip Stanisic netted the equalizer just before the final whistle, sending the team into the record books.
Xabi Alonso praised his squad for their unwavering spirit, saying, “We’ll play two finals in a week as a result. We showed great character today after their second goal. I looked my players in the eye afterwards and saw that they wanted more.
“We still have the chance to win three titles. And my boys deserve all three titles.”
Croatia international Josip Stanisic described reaching the final as one of the most significant moments of his career. “We knew what was at stake, we really wanted to get to the final and I think you could see that over 90 minutes today.”
“I don’t think we would have cared in the end if we lost and still progressed because we really wanted to get to the final, but it’s even nicer this way.”
Team captain Granit Xhaka was ecstatic to lead his team to the Final, adding “It’s pure goosebumps! You dream of an atmosphere like this. You dream of games like this. As a kid, you want to be in these games and then when you equalize just before the end and get to the final, it’s incredible.”
Roma coach Daniele De Rossi lamented the missed opportunity to reach a second consecutive Europa League final, reflecting on the disappointment of conceding late and losing a spot in Dublin, saying “When you manage to get it back from 2-0 down and go close to the miracle, knowing nobody has ever beaten them this season, it hurts to see us concede a goal like that. It hurts.”
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![Headline: Ten Hag Laments Manchester United's Defensive Lapses in 3-3 Europa League Draw Against FC Porto Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag criticised his players for "switching off" during their 3-3 draw against FC Porto in the Europa League on Thursday. Despite taking a 2-0 lead within the first 20 minutes at Estadio do Dragao, United conceded twice in seven minutes to go into half-time level, before falling behind early in the second half. In a post-match news conference, Ten Hag expressed his mixed feelings about the result, saying, "We scored two great goals and then we switched off. We don't keep possession and defending, we're switching off. We concede the first goal totally unnecessary and then you light up the fire in this stadium and it becomes very tough." The Dutch manager revealed that he addressed the issues at half-time, but was disappointed with his team's defending for the third goal. "We addressed it at half-time and then you concede a third one, so unnecessary. It's no good defending again. That's also to do with some willingness in some moments," he said. Ten Hag also had to defend his decision to substitute Marcus Rashford at half-time, despite the forward scoring United's opening goal and looking sharp throughout the first half. Initially, the manager stated that the substitution was made to keep Rashford fresh for the upcoming match against Aston Villa on Sunday. However, he later hinted that the change was made because both of Porto's first-half goals had come from crosses on Rashford's side of the pitch. "Garnacho was my best player on Sunday by far and also in many other games," Ten Hag explained. "I think in the season as I assess it so far, he is bringing us so far the offensive threat by creating chances, assists, also scoring. Garnacho, we also had to play him as well and we have two very good players over that side." He added, "I have to watch [the game] back and I think over the left side definitely we didn't defend well tonight and Marcus also played a part in this. But, as I say, it had to do with Garnacho and nothing against Rashy." Despite the disappointing result, United managed to salvage a point thanks to a stoppage-time equaliser from substitute Harry Maguire. The draw leaves Manchester United with work to do in their quest to progress in the Europa League.](https://futbolchronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/FC-Porto-v-Manchester-United-UEFA-Europa-League-202425-League-Phase-MD2-5.jpg)
Ten Hag Laments Manchester United’s Defensive Lapses in 3-3 Europa League Draw Against FC Porto
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