Alonso confirms Boniface staying
Xabi Alonso confirmed that Bayer Leverkusen striker Victor Boniface will remain at the club beyond the January transfer window amid rumours of a move to Saudi Arabia.
Boniface was absent from Leverkusen's 2-0 win over Sparta Prague in the Champions League, a result that saw the Bundesliga giant automatically qualify for the last 16.
Goals in either half from Florian Wirtz and Nathan Tella saw Alonso's side finish sixth in the 36-team standings, with a potential blockbuster tie against Celtic, Manchester City, Real Madrid or Bayern Munich in the next round.
Since the start of last season, no team has won more games than Leverkusen in major European competition (14 – level with Real Madrid and Liverpool). Meanwhile, only Barcelona and Real Madrid (48 each) have netted more goals than Alonso’s side (46) in the same period.
But the source of those goals in Europe has come from Boniface, with the Nigerian netting six goals in 11 appearances for Leverkusen in the Champions League and Europa League since arriving from Union Saint-Gilloise in 2023.
Boniface returned from injury last week but was on the bench for Leverkusen's 2-2 draw with RB Leipzig, and was not named in the squad for Alonso's side's routine victory over lowly Sparta.
Reports have suggested a move to Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr could materialise. However, Alonso was quick to rubbish those rumours.
"He will train again tomorrow. I believe he is staying with us," Alonso said. "So I have to say that I am satisfied, I am happy. He is comfortable here, so I don't believe that this is a big stress for him."
Boniface has netted eight goals in 15 games in all competitions this season, but has missed 12 games already with a niggling hamstring injury.
He enjoyed a breakthrough year under Alonso in 2023-2024, scoring 21 goals and laying on a futher 10 assists as he helped Leverkusen to a maiden Bundesliga title along with successes in the DFB-Pokal and DFL-Supercup.
In the Bundesliga this season, only Florian Wirtz (7.13) and Patrik Schick (7.92) have a higher expected goals (xG) total than Boniface (6.54) for Leverkusen.
But with Alonso confirming that the Nigerian will remain with the Bundesliga champion, it could open the door for Aston Villa's Jhon Duran to join Al-Nassr instead.
Duran is also a reported target for the Saudi Pro League contender, which is looking to bolster its star-studded frontline that already boasts the attacking talents of Ronaldo and Sadio Mane.
