Bayer's display prohibits them from winning the cup final.
Bayer Leverkusen failed in the Europa League finals against Atalanta Bergamo, leaving their season without a trophy. Veteran coach Ewald Lienen was shocked by the team's poor performance and made a surprising prediction for the upcoming DFB Cup final against 1. FC Kaiserslautern.
The dream of a treble is shattered: Bayer Leverkusen lost the Europa League final to Atalanta Bergamo with a score of 0:3 (0:2) in Dublin. The team's remarkable 51-game winning streak came to an end at the most inopportune time. They now have their last chance for silverware on Saturday, when they play the DFB Cup final at the Olympiastadion in Berlin against second-division team 1. FC Kaiserslautern, whose iconic coach Friedhelm Funkel will be retiring.
The roles for this final have been well defined. Bayer is expected to win, while Kaiserslautern is considered to be an underdog with very little chance. However, this was until Wednesday evening. The Werkself's performance was less than impressive, while Kaiserslautern played with the determined spirit of a team fighting against the odds. The last time this happened was in 2011, when Schalke 04 - a top team at the time - easily defeated MSV Duisburg (5:0).
The Europa League final left its mark and left Ewald Lienen somewhat astonished. "Bayer simply have no chance against Kaiserslautern," he said in disbelief on the "Der Sechzehner" podcast. He did not feel the need to analyze the game further, citing a lack of motivation and focus from several players. "If you don't have the will to win in a game like that, you can't expect to beat a team that throws everything into it like Bergamo," Lienen stated. He singles out Granit Xhaka, Florian Wirtz, and Exequiel Palacios for their roles in the first goal conceded. Lienen was, however, impressed by Atalanta's determination to win.
"Lack of focus and energy"
He believes that the celebrations after the Bundesliga championship win last Saturday sapped the team of their emotional energy. Many players failed to replicate their impressive performances of recent weeks. "When you always push yourself to the limit, there's bound to be a dip at some point," Lienen explained. He did not blame coach Xabi Alonso for the team's loss, acknowledging the cognitive effort it takes to analyze an opponent. But, he added, this doesn't matter if the players aren't giving their all. It's futile to debate whether a different starting lineup would have altered the outcome or if the coach should have reacted differently. "There were too many players who weren't in the right place," revealed Lienen.
The search for a coach at FC Bayern ended with the announcement of Vincent Kompany as the new head coach. The former defender of Hamburger SV played there from 2006 to 2008 and will come from relegated Premier League side FC Burnley. Find out what Lienen thinks about this development in the latest episode of "Der Sechzehner."
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Source: www.ntv.de
