Bayer Leverkusen will face Atalanta in the Europa League final at the Aviva Stadium this evening, with Dublin set to host a first major European final since 2011.
The two sides will face off at the Lansdowne Road venue (officially known as the 'Dublin Arena' in this competition for sponsorship reasons), with the German club hoping to continue what has been a remarkable campaign.
Xabi Alonso's men are undefeated in all competitions so far this season, having already wrapped up an 'invincible' campaign in the Bundesliga. They will now hope to cap it off by winning the Europa League and the DFB-Pokal over the coming days.
With their supporters having been gifted with some incredible moments over the last number of months, it is no surprise to see that they are thoroughly enjoying their trip to Dublin so far.
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Bayer Levekusen fans enjoying Dublin ahead of Europa League final
Bayer Leverkusen have certainly taken quickly to Dublin, with their official account sharing some wonderful images from our capital city.
Ahhh Dublin! 😍🇮🇪#ATAB04 | #Bayer04 #UELfinal #aCROSSeurope pic.twitter.com/msDAxT7P4V
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) May 21, 2024
They even seem to have picked up on some of the local lingo.
What's the Craic, Dublin?! 👋🇮🇪#ATAB04 | #Bayer04 #UELfinal #aCROSSeurope pic.twitter.com/rBm6IBT3OS
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) May 21, 2024
As for their fans, they are also making the most of the trip.
As is customary for tourists in Dublin, they made their way to the Temple Bar area of the city, where they seemed to make up a bulk of the patrons in some of the local pubs.
Temple Ba(ye)r 🇮🇪#ATAB04 #UELfinal | #aCROSSeurope #Bayer04 pic.twitter.com/pdahixqDTr
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) May 22, 2024
Dublin is invaded by Leverkusen pic.twitter.com/mb1NX1IK4m
— Alex (@AlexisOBrien48) May 22, 2024
🎼 𝓘𝓷 𝓚𝓸𝓹𝓮𝓷𝓱𝓪𝓰𝓮𝓷 𝓼𝓬𝓱𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓽 𝓭𝓪𝓼 𝓣𝓮𝓵𝓮𝓯𝓸𝓷 📞
📍👋 Eine Gruppe #Werkself-Fans in Dublin schickt schwarz-rote Grüße 🇮🇪 #UELfinal | #aCROSSeurope | #ATAB04 https://t.co/bJNwEynPyM pic.twitter.com/4TRCAWRoCc— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04fussball) May 21, 2024
Bayer Leverkusen are considered big favourites for this game. While Atalanta have had an impressive European campaign that has seen them overcomes the likes of Liverpool, Sporting Lisbon, and Marseille, the German side have been among the best in world football over the last six months or so.
They certainly seem confident of securing their second trophy of the season this weekend, with a screen saying 'time for Doublin?' making its way around the city over the last couple of days.
Hello from Dublin 👋Where Leverkusen have hired a van with a screen on the back to drive round with “Welcome to Doublin” on it. It also changes to “Time for Doublin?” Tempting fate? 👀 pic.twitter.com/oALriUtjoi
— Archie Rhind-Tutt (@archiert1) May 21, 2024
Xabi Alonso remains fully focused on the task at hand.
Alongside his coaching staff, he would go for a jog around the city earlier today in preparation for this evening's Europa League final.
Xabi Alonso got out to see the sights in Dublin ahead of this evening's Europa League final 🇮🇪 pic.twitter.com/l8NAQfNaLu
— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) May 22, 2024
He looks like he would still do you a job in midfield.
It should be a cracking game, with the Aviva Stadium (aka the Dublin Arena) a fine venue for the occasion.
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