Bayer Leverkusen’s Spanish CEO, Fernando Carro, isn’t too pleased by how Real Madrid are treating Xabi Alonso.
Alonso won Leverkusen their first Bundesliga title and added a DFB Pokal in an unbeaten domestic season before heading to Madrid a summer later.
Things aren’t going well, though, with the former midfielder dealing with ‘one game to save his job’ headlines before almost every match.
Such a scenario never would’ve unfolded at Leverkusen, according to Carro.
“At the time, we would have liked him to stay here, but we know he’s a coach with enormous talent who, admittedly, finds himself in a different context in Madrid,” he said.
“If the president says a coach is a necessary evil, if the coach is left to fend for himself and is always the one who receives the criticism, then the situation is quite different from what he experienced in Leverkusen, where we all pulled in the same direction and didn’t leave the coach politically isolated.
“The door is open. If they both want to return [Alonso and Florian Wirtz], they can do so at any time.
“During the international break, I spent a weekend in Madrid, and the coaching staff and my family visited us twice. We have a very good relationship; after all, during those three years, we were like a family.
“I also know they follow our matches, and we follow theirs; we keep an eye on each other. Tomorrow I’ll watch Real Madrid, and today I’m sure they’ll watch Leverkusen vs. Cologne. We have a lot of affection for each other and maintain very close contact.”
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