Bayer 04 Leverkusen Haberleri

Alonso, 41 — who twice played for Ancelotti, including at the end of a five-year spell as a Madrid player between 2009 and 2014 — has guided Leverkusen to second in the Bundesliga this season, level on points with league leaders Bayern Munich.

– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

European club football is back, with mouthwatering action and dynamite drama on seemingly every channel and in every ground across the continent. The Premier League, LaLiga, the Bundesliga, Serie A and Ligue 1 all had matchups worth rehashing.

I got four or five of them right. Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich didn’t end up the best teams in Europe, but Erling Haaland did score 50 goals, Newcastle United did finish top-six, Union Berlin did reach the Champions League, Fulham did stay up, and AS Monaco nearly won the watchability race.

The 2022-23 Bundesliga season saw Bayern Munich win their 11th consecutive title, but it obscures the fact that it was secured on the final day of the season, in a dramatic twist, snatched from the grasp of Borussia Dortmund. It was a result that did little to combat allegations that Germany’s top flight is predictable, but the circuitous journey the Bavarians took to lifting the Meisterschale ensured plenty of intrigue and chewed fingernails along the way.

Financial details were not disclosed but British media reported the German club paid €25 million euros ($27.2m) for the 30-year old.

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The 30-year-old has a year remaining on his current contract and although the Gunners have an option to extend by a further year, sources say the club are yet to trigger the clause.

AS Roma grabbed a 1-0 home victory over Bayer Leverkusen in their Europa League semifinal first leg on Thursday thanks to 20-year-old Edoardo Bove’s second-half goal.