Topic: UEFA Europa League 2023/24 Season - page 32. (Read 54308 times)

Last season I admit that Manchester United performed very well in fighting for comfortable position to be able to have UCL ticket and they finished in 3rd place.
Last season Manchester United also managed to surpass Liverpool and Aston Villa which this season were in 3rd and 4th place, while also securing UCL ticket next season, Manchester United performance this season can be said to be really very bad.
Moreover, if Manchester City plays very well and consider the FA Cup to be an important competition, then it is clear that Manchester City will be able to easily win and beat Manchester United, but they are giving Manchester United the opportunity to win and get Europa League ticket.

However, I admit that Manchester United was very lucky and managed to thwart Chelsea, who is in 6th place from getting Europa League ticket next season, hahaha the competition is truly unimaginable.

Of course, Bayer Leverkusen has got an incredible achievement in this season. They could win 2 trophies and they break the records of unbeaten performance in the whole season. Bayer Leverkusen becomes the team that never experienced a single lose in domestic competition in the season 2023-2024. It is amazing, it is a very rare record because it is something very difficult to do. People said that it is caused by Xabi factor, but I think the players also have big roles.

Yeah, it is very unfortunate that Atalanta defeated them in the final Europa league. It ruins the dream of Bayer Leverkusen to win treble winners and be a team with no defeat in all competitions in 1 season. But I think we must appreciate Bayer Leverkusen, they already showed great performance in the whole season.

You're right. Xabi Alonso must learn from the defeat, he doesn't too focused on dominating the ball positions but to play more effectively. When they play against a team with a strong defense with the tactic of man on man marking, they must be more offensive. Well, I think it is about how to choose a proper tactic. Xabi can't always rely on a single tactic, he must have varied tactics and must adjust the tactic with the opponents. Xabi Alonso also needs to trust on a pure striker for the machine goal in the attacking line. Xabi can't choose random players for the crucial match like the final UEL

Bayer Leverkusen dreams of winning a treble was shattered but they will strive harder next season. Bayer Leverkusen have such trembling long unbeaten run and this is the longest in European football. Xabi Alonso was making positive steps with Leverkusen but Atalanta scattered his plans in the Europa League final, thrashed them 3 nil which was a disgrace for such a club that have reach this far.

It teaches Xabi Alonso how to properly handle the club when Leverkusen faces a team similar to Atalanta used the man on man marking strategy. Gasperini's strategy was to the point and it was isolating its opponent. He was also impeding the movement of the Leverkusen players by marking them one on one and i totally aware about how hard leverkusen to rebuild from the bottom. Sometimes the defenders of leverkusen are feeling panic.

I believe that Xabi Alonso must be patient because now is not their momen to win europa league this season. Leverkusen and atalanta will be facing again in the UCL soon. Atalanta managed to steal the Europa League from them, which is a wonderful thing after gasperini spent 7 years without a trophy on atalanta. It broke all of the forecasts that Leverkusen would win the game.
Gasperini's smart decision-making has helped Atalanta win the Europa League this season. Xabi Alonso has to learn more about Italian football.

There are many Italian clubs with mixed formations, such as Atalanta. It teaches Xabi an excellent lesson.

What bayern Leverkusen has achieve is something that is unbelievable and it's going to take a whole lot of hard work for them to actually replicate this kind of performance again next season and that's where the entire team should be focus on now not that one final defeat to Atlanta, of which everyone understood is a final and never really expected Atlanta to hand the title over just like that without a fight.

What Leversekun plans are different from what the results come out with. Nobody expected that Leversekun was going to receive so much pressure from Atlanta with their strong performance right from the beginning of this season. After the intensity they put in, they prevented any of their opponents from defeating them in every match, and everyone was proud of them for being unbeatable this season. But they were disappointed by being given Atlanta opportunities to win them in the final stage, but Shal, I can't blame them. That's all about football, someday's you win and someday's you most lose, so I'm still proud of them for keeping a big record this season. I think next season they may perform better than this season.

one thing that I will always remember is that Leverkusen was not ready to compete in the final round at that time.
I mean, usually Leverkusen in every match from the preliminary round to the semi finals, Leverkusen appearance looks very confident in providing quite good resistance but when they have difficulty attacking, Xabi will definitely provide a defensive strategy to end the match in a draw.
but in yesterday's match, it was clear that Leverkusen did not have the option to defend or attack and looking at the mentality of the Leverkusen players they looked nervous and not confident which made all the Leverkusen players frustrated.
not only that, after conceding the first goal, Leverkusen tried to put up resistance but ended in failure again when the Leverkusen players lacked focus when in front of Atalanta goal.

after that, Leverkusen became more and more deadlocked, tried to attack but the defense became weak, but tried to defend, but Atalanta attacks became bigger.
some people say Leverkusen has very good ball control but for me if someone saw the live match at that time they would definitely say that Atalanta had more possession of the ball and gave them the opportunity to score 3 scores.

Atalanta didn't play defensively, they preferred to play a tough game. This style of play made the opponent unable to play the passing game as they wanted. After scoring the goal, they started to play more relaxed. They didn't get the pressure they expected from their opponents and this led to a more relaxed game.

Leverkusen tried to dominate the game but failed to do so for most of the match. They conceded an unexpected goal and couldn't recover. Leverkusen's winning streak was definitely coming to an end and it ended in this game.

They weren't defensive in my opinion, they man marked Bayern Leverkusen players man to man all throughout the game. Same way they defended was the same way they attacked, thanks to them goalkeeper who did some brilliant and excellent goalkeeping duty for the club that night.
Another thing was that they was completely poor they Bayern Leverkusen at defending and the goalkeeper also didn't help matters, two goals scored are goals I feel like he should have done well to catch or save.

Bayern Leverkusen weren't really possessive of the game, Atalanta made it difficult for them to even operate in the midfied. Jeremy Frimpong did well to cause some creativity from the right side of the wing but these Atalanta worked together to fix shiit up

The way Leverkusen expected the match was not how it was for them from the starting till the end, and this was why Leverkusen easily lost focus after Lookman scored the first goal. Leverkusen is used to absorbing pressure even when you are winning them. They will come back in the second half and draw the match or win it.

It was different in the case of Atalanta, because they were playing with pressure and Atalanta didn't give them any opportunity to penetrate their defense making it more frustrating for them. Maybe it is because it was a final match and the players lack the experience of playing in the finals.

Give credit where credit is due. That insane genius Gasperini gave a tactical tutorial. This went beyond attitude, but that was crucial. Gasperini OUTSMARTED Leverkusen every turn. His one-on-one marking was oppressive. Leverkusen, noted for their creativity and passing, couldn't link two passes together. Every time they touched the ball, an Atalanta player was breathing down their necks. It was lovely to watch

Gasperini is finally getting his due after seven years at Atalanta. Mastermind, this game was his best. His players performed his plan perfectly. Each was like a heat-seeking missile, targeting their Leverkusen player. Leverkusen had no time, room, or chance to start

Atalanta definitely deserved this win. Gazperini's tactical skill made them the better team that day. Story over

The disappointment of losing the Europa League final and ending their unbeaten record in such a manner is unpleasant for Leverkusen.  Not being able to grab the UEL trophy and at thesame time conceding three goals without a goal in return only makes the talk of the defeat wild.  The final goal to conclude the loss scored in the dire minute of the game and at a crucial time of the season for Leverkusen only increases the level of disappointment and will be a definite reoccurrence in the mind of the team as a whole.

 Despite the huge loss, Leverkusen's overall season performance remains remarkable. Even having failed in the final, their achievements throughout the season shouldn't be looked away. However, the game of two nights ago gives them the importance of addressing weaknesses and staying vigilant, as other teams will undoubtedly take note of Atalanta's successful tactics and seek to exploit Leverkusen's vulnerabilities in future encounters. This loss serves as a learning experience, motivating Leverkusen to regroup, refine their strategies, and strive for even greater success in the seasons to come.

 It's definitely a huge lesson to be learnt by the German side. Really they were put at a spot they shouldn't have been so vulnerable to be and at thesame time Atalanta used that game to gain victory and confidence. The German side are hardworking no doubt and I personally still have a good level of conviction in them. They should learn from the mistakes of the loss, remarkable feat they've attained. It's safe to commend them greatly. Both teams literally deserves good commendation.

The two teams have shown different performances in their respective leagues, Leverkusen appeared quite consistent and unbeaten, while Atlanta of course came limping after they suffered several defeats including when playing in the Coppa Italia Cup, but in the Europa League final match we actually saw things that were inversely proportional to the condition of the two teams so far,  Leverkusen performed quite well in the final but it was quite surprising for us to see that they only played the ball well but were unable to score a single goal and as if they were missing out on luck and also a way to make a comeback from a lose like they always do.

I think there was nothing wrong in Leverkusen plan in the game, because statistically they were able to play quite well and could even dominate in the game, but indeed Atlanta who played loose without burden was more able to optimize the match better, gasperini seemed to focus more on defense as the main strategy to destroy Leverkusen,  Gasperini realizes Leverkusen have a dangerous attack and he manages to anticipate this with the solid defense they build, in addition, Atlanta, which does have only a few attacks, but is more effective by relying on long balls that penetrate the Leverkusen defense.

Previously, we always waited and wondered whether there would be a team that could beat Leverkusen this season and that happened in the European League, to be precise in the final match between Atalanta vs Leverkusen. Atalanta became the first team to successfully defeat Leverkusen this season and they did so in the final match. Something that was a little unexpected, because previously Leverkusen was the team that we placed as big favorites to win, but Atalanta broke it all.
And they were even able to beat Leverkusen with a landslide score of 3 goals without reply. From here we can see that no matter how strong a team is, even without losing doesn't mean they will never lose. Even though they are very superior on paper, that doesn't mean it will be a guarantee that they will be able to win. Atalanta can answer everyone's questions by successfully becoming the team that can beat Leverkusen this season.

Atalanta played with a defensive strategy and appeared aggressive by committing more fouls against their opponents who were trying to build dangerous attacks. This kind of strategy basically works in some games, but not in many games. Xabi Alonso doesn't have much experience dealing with problems like that in important matches like finals, so he will definitely have difficulty not conceding goals while he really wants his team to score goals.

Of course, from these match statistics, we can learn that not all teams that are able to dominate possession of the ball and have good passing accuracy are able to score goals to win the match. Sometimes a good strategy in many matches will also be broken by a team that only defends and takes advantage of counter attacks.

They have strong mentality but gesperini's strategy is totally worked against atalanta. The man on man marking has been making it so difficult for leverkusen to rebuild its attack from the bottom. No doubt that many people were praising him as a good coach even though this is his first trophy after gasperini 7 years managing atalanta.
Im also praising him caused by he could find the best strategy to destroy leverkusen. People are hoping leverkusen to win the game but they are totally wrong about that. No player on leverkusen who was capable enough to leave from being marked by atalanta's players.
I really appreciate what gasperini did. A good performance combined by correct strategy helped atalanta a lot.

Leverkusen was under so much pressure aswell and that was an advantage for Atalanta because the pressure kept Leverkusen disorganized especially after the first goal, their rhythm changed they began to look tensed because there's the pressure to equalize and then get to win the game and set the record while been able to maintain their unbeaten streak through out the season so it was really rough on them.

Like you did stated correctly the fact that there was  no expectations whatsoever from Atlanta kept them relaxed a little and properly execute their plans on making sure they are able to win the trophy if the opportunity avails it's self, they aswell understood that Leverkusen and Liverpool happens to be the two top teams in the whole of the Europa league game as at then and I'd they were able to win Liverpool with a certain tactics than employing same tactics against Leverkusen will be effective and it was applied and the incredible result was the final outcome.

That victory alone got Atlanta having a more strong and rougher winning mentality that at this point I don't think most teams in their domestic league can get it easy against them neither will teams in the Europa this season be able to really contend them because winning the top and almost toughest team in the league definitely helps boost their confidence to feeling they are not just a regular team .

They tried to score a goal as quickly as possible and they managed to get it in the 12th minute. The goal they were able to create made their mentality even better so they created a second goal in the 26th minute. The 2 goal advantage they held clearly allowed them to have the upper hand , they could be more calm in playing the game, even though Leverkusen tried to press and try to create goals, they always managed to break it.

This is the key to their success in this match. Apart from that, they are also aware that Leverkusen can always score goals before the end of the match, and they anticipate this by continuing to focus. And the third goal they scored in the 75th minute was the killer of the match, because it was very difficult for Leverkusen to catch the goal with only 15 minutes remaining. So the strategy that Atalanta implemented in this match went according to plan and it led them to victory.

Leverkusen may have had a flaw in their plans or they may not have performed as planned. How do you see Leverkusen losing by a wide margin in the final? Granted that a lesser team can beat a bigger team in the finals, and I also accept that anything untoward can happen in the finals, so how come the favorites lose by such a huge margin against the other teams in the finals. Leverkusen conceded three goals in contrast they failed to score a goal here but they looked like a very weak team. If they also take extra pressure thinking that it's the final match of a big tournament and if they get nervous then I definitely don't consider the players as professional players.

And when the favorites by many authorities cannot win the final as happened with Leverkusen, it also tells many people that in a final anything can happen and it is very important not to underestimate any opponent. Because the opponent who was not the favorite did have the fighting spirit to win the match, so this was truly proven in the efforts of Atalanta, who were generally not the favorites to win at that time. However, I myself am quite amazed by what Atalanta achieved because the team was able to silence many people's predictions and favorites.