Xabi Alonso said Bayer Leverkusen’s unbeaten run was “the consequence of good work” after they progressed to the Europa League semi-finals with a 3-1 aggregate win over West Ham United.
Alonso’s side fell behind to Michail Antonio’s header and struggled to reach their usual standards in the first half, while the hosts created several more chances.
Leverkusen, fresh from their first Bundesliga win, improved markedly after half-time, missing numerous chances before substitute Jeremie Frimpong’s shot was deflected past Lukasz Fabianski in the 89th minute, with the score ending 1 -1 in the evening.
The result means Leverkusen now remain unbeaten in 44 matches in all competitions and are still on course to win a treble, having won the German league title and also progressed to the DFB-Pokal final.
Speaking to TNT Sports, head coach Alonso said: “We expected (a physical match) West Ham to have very good players, good energy, that is a credit to them. They were totally different from what they were in Leverkusen.
“Not showing a soft mentality in a difficult moment is very important because if you want to progress in Europe and reach the semi-finals and hopefully a little further, you also have to face difficult moments because it is not always possible to control the 90 minutes.
“They were standing in those difficult moments and getting through them, that was the key to not conceding the second or third goal.
“I’m happy to pass. In the Europa League, there are always difficult moments. Records (invincibility) are the result of good work.
Leverkusen will face Roma in the Europa League semi-final.
They will then be in action this Sunday at Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga.
GO FURTHER
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