Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso praised his side’s “exceptional” record-breaking unbeaten run but said it hurts that it was ended in the Europa League final.
The German side have been one of the stories of the season, having gone 51 games without defeat as well as winning the Bundesliga.
But their hopes of ending a long wait for European glory were dashed on Wednesday night as they lost 3-0 to Italian side Atalanta at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium.
It was their first defeat since 27 May last year and, while Alonso was proud of his side’s achievements over the last year, he said the Europa League final loss was tough to take.
“Atalanta were better than us and they deserve the trophy,” the former Liverpool midfielder said.
“It wasn’t our day. We’ve had a bad night. It hurts that it happened in such an important match.”
He added: “The normality is not to suffer a first defeat in the 52nd game. It’s exceptional what we achieved and we should be proud. But it’s painful.”
