Florian Wirtz returns to help unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen chase history

LEVERKUSEN – Bayer Leverkusen’s chances in the Europa League final against Atalanta in Dublin, Ireland, on May 22 have been boosted by the return of star midfielder Florian Wirtz to full fitness.

A crucial component of their maiden Bundesliga title triumph, Wirtz has had to settle for a bit-part role in recent weeks as coach Xabi Alonso, with games like this in mind, wrapped the 21-year-old in cotton wool. The youngster had been playing through the pain of a leg-muscle injury.

He has not played a full 90 minutes since Leverkusen’s Europa League quarter-final, first-leg win over West Ham United on April 11, nine games ago, but has still made an impact. He came off the bench at half-time and scored a hat-trick as Leverkusen beat Werder Bremen 5-0 to secure the league title in mid-April.

In his next two league games, Wirtz laid on equalisers deep in stoppage time against Borussia Dortmund and Stuttgart which kept their unbeaten run alive.

Even with a team firing on all cylinders amid a 51-game unbeaten run in all competitions dating back to May 2023, Alonso knows Wirtz offers something unique, with 18 goals and 20 assists in all competitions this season.

His performances have him earmarked for future Ballon d’Or honours, with some in the German media suggesting he may be an outside chance in 2024 should Germany go far at their home European Championship this summer.

Alonso, who has repeatedly preached patience as Leverkusen have continued their rampage this season, has taken risks with Wirtz despite his injury.

He admitted he had tried to rest the midfielder in the second leg of Leverkusen’s Europa League semi-final against AS Roma, but brought him off the bench with nine minutes remaining and Leverkusen trailing 2-0 on the night but level 2-2 on aggregate.

They scored a minute later to take the lead in the tie and added a second in stoppage time to stretch their unbeaten streak to 49 games, breaking a 59-year-old European record in the process.

“He couldn’t run well, he was limping, but he wanted to help the team. He’s still a pretty good player when he’s 70 per cent fit. But he still needs a bit more time,” Alonso said.

Wirtz missed the next league game but returned as a substitute on May 18 in the 2-1 win over Augsburg, with Alonso saying beforehand that “he feels much better”.

Coming into this season, the 1988 Uefa Cup and the 1993 German Cup were the only titles Leverkusen had won in their 120-year history.

Having clinched the Bundesliga in mid-April, Leverkusen – who face second-division Kaiserslautern in the German Cup final on May 25 – are now two wins away from an unbeaten treble.

Without a major trophy since the 1963 Italian Cup, Atalanta will also be hoping for a drought-breaking victory – but face a side who do not seem to know when they are beaten.

Even if the Serie A side, who lost the Italian Cup final to Juventus on May 15, manage to get a jump on their opponents, Leverkusen’s record late in matches will keep Gian Piero Gasperini’s outfit looking over their shoulder.

Leverkusen have scored 15 goals after the 90-minute mark this season, often snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.

While luck, momentum and an insatiable home crowed have played a role, opponents have struggled to keep up with Leverkusen’s relentless ball movement and have faded late in games.

Nowhere has this been more evident than in the Europa League. Since the knockout rounds began, 11 of Leverkusen’s 12 goals have been scored after the 70-minute mark.

After the win over Augsburg which sealed the unbeaten league season, Alonso looked ahead to the next two finals.

“With this atmosphere, with this energy, there are reasons to be optimistic – and to believe,” the 42-year-old Spaniard said.

On the possibility of going the season unbeaten in all competitions, he added: “It would be something written in golden letters, not only in the history of our club but probably all European football. I hope we can.” AFP