Bayer Leverkusen
Tah raves about Alonso: “It took me to a new level”
Jonathan Tah raves about Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso. photo
© Uwe Anspach/dpa
Jonathan Tah is at Bayer and in the national team. Responsible for this: his exercise bike.
National soccer player Jonathan Tah owes his further sporting development primarily to his coach Xabi Alonso and praised him highly.
“Xabi Alonso has taken me to a new level. Now I’m even more unpleasant because I always have my eye on my opponent and I’m on him,” says the defender from Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen in an interview with “Zeit”. The Spaniard has improved both his style of defense in his own penalty area and his build-up play.
“The coach is always working on it with us defenders,” said Tah. In addition, Alonso is not a coach “who stands on the sidelines, remains silent and watches.” If he doesn’t like something, he intervenes, “regardless of how prominent a player is. There aren’t many coaches who can do that, simply because they couldn’t play football as well as him,” said the 28-year-old. “It has an impact when someone like that shows you what they want from you.”
Tah, who was named the best young footballer in Germany at the age of 16, is having a strong season and is on the verge of winning the first German championship with Bayer. The Werkself, who are still unbeaten this season, still have a chance of winning the title in the DFB Cup and the Europa League.
Tah’s vision and outlook
He himself has also taken new paths in view of the mental stress in professional football. “I’ve been working with a psychologist who has nothing to do with football for three years,” said Tah. That showed him other perspectives. “If you develop privately or in your personality, this automatically also affects your career.” He has also been working with “a private performance coach” for two and a half years.
Tah should also play an important defensive role in national coach Julian Nagelsmann’s squad at the home European Championships. Tah is convinced of the strengths of the DFB team, the last victories against France and the Netherlands give us courage. “Of course we shouldn’t praise everything too highly, it wasn’t perfect. But we should enjoy the fact that we have untied the knot, despite many doubts from outside. That we have managed to awaken hope in people again for this great thing tournament in the summer,” said Tah, adding: “I believe we will be successful.