Bayer Leverkusen head coach Xabi Alonso was disappointed with his side's naivety in the 2-1 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Leverkusen had initially scored a goal against ten-man Atletico, but gave away the lead in the second half and had a player sent off themselves, before Julian Alvarez won the match late on.
That result ended an eleven-match winning streak for Leverkusen and leaves them sixth in the league stage with 13 points.
Although they are still on the verge of avoiding a place in the play-offs and going straight to the round of 16, Alonso believes his young team still has a lot to learn in the run-up to the knockout stages and a lot will benefit from the defeat.
“I think when you compete at the highest level you have to learn from these experiences,” Alonso told Movistar Plus.
“In these situations it's not just the football that counts, it's also the maturity we have at that moment and today I think we missed that point at the highest level and we have to improve that if we want to compete in these games.
“We are still in the group stage, but when you are in the round of 16, in the quarter-finals, especially when you are playing away from home, you have to learn from these moments.
“Understand what you need, not only in the game itself, but also in the energy of the game, by reading the game and learning what to do when you are a little overwhelmed by the situation, how to react.
“It's very easy to say it, but the best thing is that when you experience it on the field, you learn to read it, which is sometimes complicated. For us, it's a good experience to compete at such a high level. “
Leverkusen will end the competition phase in the Champions League next Wednesday with a home game against Sparta Prague.
5 – @9julianalvarez has scored five goals with @atletienglish in the current @ChampionsLeague season (seven games), equaling his single-season record in the league set last season with #ManCity (also five goals in seven games) . Scratch. pic.twitter.com/cq0yjr5lxE
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) January 21, 2025
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