Alonso wants to keep it cool in Leverkusen-Bayern showdown

Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso said keeping a cool head would be the secret to making his side's recent dominance of Bayern Munich count in the Champions League last 16.

Managing in the top flight for just a second full season, Alonso may be inexperienced in coaching terms, but the Spaniard knows a thing or two about Champions League success from his playing days.

Alonso won the Champions League with both Liverpool and Real Madrid. During a career in which he also spent three seasons at Bayern, he reached the final three times and the semi-finals on a further six occasions.

On top of his club honours, Alonso also won two European Championships with Spain and the 2010 World Cup.

Under Alonso, who took over in October 2022, Leverkusen have never lost to Bayern, winning three games and drawing the other three.

But with this the first meeting on the European stage -- and with this season's final in Munich -- Alonso's big match experience could prove crucial for Leverkusen.

On Saturday, Bayer Leverkusen thumped Eintracht Frankfurt 4-1 to stay eight points behind Bayern and keep their slim hopes alive of defending their Bundesliga title.

Speaking after the match, Alonso said domestic dominance meant little when the Champions League anthem soars through the stadium speakers.

"It doesn't matter. The next game is always the most important. It will be brutally difficult for us and it'll be a big challenge.

"We're in form. We want to show again we can bring the fight to Bayern. But we also know the Champions League and Bundesliga are totally different.

"The Champions League is a bit more emotional. Emotional control is most important.

 'Deal with the bad moments'

Leverkusen's best has been very good this season, but a failure to keep their emotions in check has already cost Alonso's side.

Away against Atletico Madrid, Leverkusen were the better side but lost after falling prey to Diego Simeone's wily team.

A goal up at half-time and playing against 10 men, Leverkusen let their emotions get the better of them, finishing a man down themselves and conceding a Julian Alvarez winner in the 90th minute.

Leverkusen midfielder Granit Xhaka, revitalised after leaving Arsenal two years ago for a return to Germany, said stability would be the key.

"I think we're stable enough to upset Bayern," said Xhaka.

"In the league, let's see where things are after 34 matchdays. But there's definitely a lot to be gained in the Champions League."

While Bayern are six-time European champions, Leverkusen's best performance in the competition came when they finished runners-up to Real Madrid in 2002.

But they hope to compensate for a relative lack of European pedigree by drawing on the confidence gleaned from past encounters with Bayern during Alonso's tenure.

"We know each other very well and we've played recently," said Alonso.

"We need to try and deal with the bad moments we might have, because that's the Champions League, to go through difficult moments and not make many mistakes.

"We're playing at the Allianz, then we play at home. It's Bayern, they're the best team in Germany.