Bayer Leverkusen always believed Xabi Alonso would snub Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid to continue their fairytale, says chief Simon Rolfes… as he warns big clubs circling around their top talents

Bayer Leverkusen were always confident Xabi Alonso would resist the overtures of Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid to continue his fairytale with them.

Alonso, 42, is the hottest property in coaching after guiding Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title triumph – and they could yet scoop two more trophies while remaining unbeaten.

Amid intense speculation he would be Jurgen Klopp‘s successor at Liverpool, or replace Thomas Tuchel at Bayern, Alonso reaffirmed his commitment to Leverkusen last month.

The club’s managing director of sport Simon Rolfes said there was never any doubt Alonso would stay a little longer.

‘No. We were always trustful and had open communication about everything,’ he told the Daily Mirror.

There were extraordinary scenes of celebration after Leverkusen won a first Bundesliga title

Leverkusen’s managing director of sport Simon Rolfes always believed Alonso would stay

‘My feeling all the time was quite good, there has been some interest for sure but my feeling was always that he feels really good and likes to work with Bayer Leverkusen.

‘He has a very good connection with the players, the club and the supporters and he feels like, ‘okay, maybe it’s good to stay here longer’.

‘We are going to continue together and have more goals to achieve.’

Leverkusen’s next ambitions are to add the German Cup and the Europa League to the Bundesliga, which was sealed when they thrashed Werder Bremen 5-0 last Sunday.

They extended their extraordinary unbeaten season in all competitions to 44 matches when Jeremie Frimpong scored an 89th-minute equaliser at West Ham to secure a 3-1 aggregate win on Thursday night.

Leverkusen face a tough Bundesliga assignment at Champions League semi-finalists Borussia Dortmund on Sunday afternoon.

Alonso’s team have drawn Roma in the Europa League semi-finals and take on second-tier Kaiserslautern in the DFB-Pokal final on May 25.

One issue for Leverkusen is bigger clubs in Germany, England and beyond picking off their star talents this summer.

Wing-back Frimpong has been linked with Manchester United, Piero Hincapie has attracted interest from Liverpool, while 20-year-old star Florian Wirtz has suitors in Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Alonso is doused in beer as Leverkusen celebrate their historic Bundesliga triumph

Jeremie Frimpong celebrates his late equaliser at West Ham to extend Leverkusen’s unbeaten season to 44 games in all competitions 

‘One thing is that we always extended the contracts early,’ Rolfes added. ‘We have a lot of control over those situations.

‘The other thing is to convince, to give the players a feeling they’re at the right place to develop.

‘It’s about developing their career and also having success together as a team. There’s a strong bond between the guys ad you can see that they love to play together in this club and environment.

‘It’s a real family environment but we try to push the guys as well to develop and to get better. This combination puts us in a very good position in the player’s opinion.’