
Bayer Leverkusen suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield in a recent UEFA Champions League match, drawing criticism towards manager Xabi Alonso for his tactical decisions.
Former Manchester City and Newcastle United goalkeeper Shay Given was particularly vocal about Alonso's choice to deploy striker Victor Boniface as a left winger in a 3-5-2 formation, leaving the team without a recognized center forward.

Despite holding Liverpool scoreless in the first half, Leverkusen's defense crumbled in the second half, with Luis Díaz scoring a hat-trick and Cody Gakpo adding another goal.
Given remarked on Premier Sports Ireland, "I was at the Europa League final at the end of the season in Dublin, they were so disappointing, they got bullied against Atalanta in the final. I don’t know, just very poor in the final third. They did play out from the back and through the thirds but Boniface at times was playing on the left wing. You want him to be more of a target man, you want to bring some sort of injection to the attack."
Alonso acknowledged the team's shortcomings in the post-match press conference, stating, "For sure, the second half compared to the first half wasn’t good enough. First 45 minutes we competed really well and played well. We were able to have good possession and maybe not that many chances, but intense in defence and have good organisation."
He further explained, "Second half we started not having the ball in such good positions, we couldn’t find the free player so they were recovering the ball too easily. Because of that we weren’t able to hold the intensity."
The defeat marked Bayer Leverkusen's first loss on the road in 18 months, and they will aim to recover when they face Bochum this weekend. Meanwhile, Liverpool prepares to host Aston Villa before the November international break.
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