Leverkusen looking for a miracle

Revival of fortunes

With this season's final in Munich, Bayern was under more pressure than Leverkusen heading into the first leg.

But, after a goalkeeping howler, an unnecessary penalty and some poor marking for a Harry Kane header, Bayern already has a foot in the quarterfinals.

Leverkusen has not made it as far as the last eight of the Champions League since its run to the final in 2002, where it lost to a Zinedine Zidane-inspired Real Madrid.

A two-time Champions League winner as a player, Alonso has outlined the scale of the task now awaiting his side, but knows from experience anything is possible.

"After this game, we'll need a bit more time, so we can recover — in football we've seen big miracles quite often and we almost need one," he said last Wednesday.

"It's football, it's not my first time (against the odds), and there's another game at home."

Alonso may be relatively inexperienced — this season is his first coaching in the Champions League and his second full campaign at the top level — but he has already performed miracles in the Leverkusen dugout.

Weighed down by the unwanted 'Neverkusen' moniker, having never won the Bundesliga in its 120-year history, Alonso took over with the club in the midst of a relegation battle in October 2022.

Alonso had an almost immediate impact, reviving the club's fortunes as it stacked up a series of victories, including a 2-1 defeat of Bayern, which proved to be Julian Nagelsmann's last match in charge of the German giant before getting sacked.

The following season, Alonso piloted Leverkusen to an unprecedented unbeaten league and cup double, along with a run to the Europa League final.

That Europa League final defeat was Leverkusen's only loss in 53 games last season.

Alonso's men scored 17 stoppage-time goals in all competitions, showcasing a self-belief that stayed resolute until the final whistle.