West Ham technical director Tim Steidten was spotted embracing Xabi Alonso at full-time during the 2-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League on Thursday (11 April).The Leverkusen boss is said to be a friend of the West Ham official, though the Liverpool-linked manager has also been previously linked with a move to the London Stadium.It was reported, as per The Sun [April 2023], that Alonso was “a real possibility” to replace David Moyes last summer. However, the Scot was retained and Alonso remained with Leverkusen, where he has shone this season.Sean Whetstone posted the image via his X account on Saturday (13 April), with the caption: “Tim Steidten embraces his friend Xabi Alonso after the West Ham defeat on Thursday night.Can West Ham United overturn a two-goal deficit v Bayer Leverkusen?While Steidten and Alonso shared a nice moment between friends at full-time, Moyes will be more focused on the second leg at the London Stadium, with a spot in the Europa League semi-final at stake.The Hammers did incredibly well to keep a clean sheet until the 83rd minute, with Leverkusen holding the share of possession, and Mohammed Kudus the only player to manage a shot for the away side.With the full backing of fans at the London Stadium, Moyes will feel that any result is possible for his West Ham side, but they must employ a much better tactic than what they used in Germany.In the end, Alonso’s depth in substitutes gave his side the edge, with Jonas Hofmann and Victor Boniface both coming off the bench to score two late goals, crushing the Hammers’ hopes of returning to England with a 0-0 draw.Some may also feel that the Hammers were lucky to still have all 11 players on the pitch during the match, with Lucas Paqueta carded for a rash challenge on Amine Adli before catching Florian Wirtz just three minutes later.
