Double is just the beginning of the journey for the evolving Bayer Leverkusen

Bayer Leverkusen to help the club win more trophies. Photo: John MacDougall/AFP/Getty Images" src="https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/gAmolFHUTLFr2Rq5Zkxang-/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU3Nw-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/theguardian_763/7dc9db049b3c63b43109 81544baae4c1″ data-src= "https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/gAmolFHUTLFr2Rq5Zkxang-/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU3Nw-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/theguardian_763/7dc9db049b3c63b431098154 4baae4c1″/>

It wasn't supposed to happen like that. They had shown they could fall with the finish in sight - and how - against Zinedine Zidane's famous, thunderous left foot at Hampden Park, or against a rampant Bayern Munich in the Covid DFB Pokal final in Berlin. For a more modern touch, you could even play last year's Europa League semi-final under Xabi Alonso, in which José Mourinho and Roma miraculously survived a barrage in the BayArena (23 Leverkusen shots to ...