Leverkusen Were Flexible, Efficient, Alonso Says After Win at Feyenoord 

Bayer Leverkusen's Spanish coach Xabi Alonso looks on prior to the UEFA Champions League 1st round day 1 football match between Feyenoord and Bayer Leverkusen at The De Kuip Stadium, in Rotterdam on September 19, 2024. (AFP)
Bayer Leverkusen's Spanish coach Xabi Alonso looks on prior to the UEFA Champions League 1st round day 1 football match between Feyenoord and Bayer Leverkusen at The De Kuip Stadium, in Rotterdam on September 19, 2024. (AFP)
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Leverkusen Were Flexible, Efficient, Alonso Says After Win at Feyenoord 

Bayer Leverkusen's Spanish coach Xabi Alonso looks on prior to the UEFA Champions League 1st round day 1 football match between Feyenoord and Bayer Leverkusen at The De Kuip Stadium, in Rotterdam on September 19, 2024. (AFP)
Bayer Leverkusen's Spanish coach Xabi Alonso looks on prior to the UEFA Champions League 1st round day 1 football match between Feyenoord and Bayer Leverkusen at The De Kuip Stadium, in Rotterdam on September 19, 2024. (AFP)

Bayer Leverkusen head coach Xabi Alonso was happy with the German champions' 4-0 win at Feyenoord in their Champions League campaign opener on Thursday, but said the victory did not come as easily as it looked.

Former Spain midfielder Alonso, who won the European top-flight title twice as a player with Liverpool and Real Madrid, said his players needed some time to get out of the early pressure from the hosts in his first Champions League match as a manager.

"We were not lucky, but efficient, in the first minutes... we needed a bit more control on the build-up to find the free spaces," the 42-year-old said.

Alonso said it was never easy in the Champions League, with Leverkusen putting on a disciplined performance in the goalless second half.

"We have good players who understand what the game requires. They are flexible," he said.

"We need to have those registers... be flexible during the game."



No Premier League Clubs Charged with 2021-2024 PSR Breaches

Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Everton - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - December 31, 2022 General view of a Premier League branded ball inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Everton - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - December 31, 2022 General view of a Premier League branded ball inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
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No Premier League Clubs Charged with 2021-2024 PSR Breaches

Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Everton - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - December 31, 2022 General view of a Premier League branded ball inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Everton - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - December 31, 2022 General view of a Premier League branded ball inside the stadium before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo

No English top-flight clubs have been charged for breaches of Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) for the period 2021-2024 although Leicester City remain at risk pending the outcome of an ongoing legal case.

Clubs that had reported losses in the initial two years of the current three-year period were obligated to submit their accounts for the 2023-24 season to the Premier League by Dec. 31. Losses should not exceed 105 million pounds over a rolling three-year period, according to the league's PSR rules.

Everton and Nottingham Forest were both sanctioned last season for breaches of PSR rules and were docked eight and four points respectively.

Leicester, who were promoted last season from the Championship but are currently 19th in the table, avoided a points deduction against a charge in September relating to the three years until the end of the 2022-23 season, Reuters reported.

The club's appeal against the charge was upheld on the basis that an independent commission ruling on the case did not have jurisdiction because Leicester's accounting period ended when the club had already been relegated to the second tier.

"Issues as to the jurisdiction of the Premier League over Leicester City Football Club in relation to PSR compliance are currently the subject of confidential arbitration proceedings," the Premier League and Leicester said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

"Accordingly, neither the League nor the club will make any further comment at this stage about any aspect of the club's compliance or otherwise with any of the PSR or related Rules, save to say that no complaint has been brought against Leicester by the League for any breach of the PSRs for the period ending Season 2023/24."

No English top-flight clubs have been charged for breaches of Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) for the period 2021-2024 although Leicester City remain at risk pending the outcome of an ongoing legal case.

Clubs that had reported losses in the initial two years of the current three-year period were obligated to submit their accounts for the 2023-24 season to the Premier League by Dec. 31. Losses should not exceed 105 million pounds over a rolling three-year period, according to the league's PSR rules.

Everton and Nottingham Forest were both sanctioned last season for breaches of PSR rules and were docked eight and four points respectively.

Leicester, who were promoted last season from the Championship but are currently 19th in the table, avoided a points deduction against a charge in September relating to the three years until the end of the 2022-23 season.

The club's appeal against the charge was upheld on the basis that an independent commission ruling on the case did not have jurisdiction because Leicester's accounting period ended when the club had already been relegated to the second tier.

"Issues as to the jurisdiction of the Premier League over Leicester City Football Club in relation to PSR compliance are currently the subject of confidential arbitration proceedings," the Premier League and Leicester said in a joint statement on Tuesday.

"Accordingly, neither the League nor the club will make any further comment at this stage about any aspect of the club's compliance or otherwise with any of the PSR or related Rules, save to say that no complaint has been brought against Leicester by the League for any breach of the PSRs for the period ending Season 2023/24."