Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso has announced that he will be leaving the Bundesliga club this summer, Nigeriasoccernet.com reports.
The 43-year-old confirmed the news during a press conference on Friday, bringing an end to his almost three-year stint at the helm.
"This week the club and I have agreed that these two games are going to be my last as Bayer Leverkusen coach," Alonso said on Friday.
"It is not a moment to talk too much about the future because we want to have a proper farewell on Sunday here for some players, for myself, and it is the right moment to announce it."
Alonso will be leaving behind his talismanic strike Victor Boniface, a player he brought in from Bodo/Glimt in 2023.
While Leverkusen went ahead to win the Bundesliga and DFB Pokal in the 2023/23 season, Boniface being his go-to-player was the club's top scorer.
Alonso has been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid, and it is understood that he is close to returning to the Bernabeu, where he played from 2009 to 2014.
The Spanish manager although did not explicitly confirm his next destination, it is widely expected that he will replace Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid.
By Olujimi Dare Ogun