Xabi Alonso wants Bayer Leverkusen to give one last big push to crown an intense phase of matches with a win at Wolfsburg.

Saturday's match will mark Leverkusen's ninth match since January 10, when the season restarted following the German winter break, across three competitions.

Leverkusen have lost just one of their last 54 top-flight matches (3-2 to Leipzig on MD2) and are unbeaten in their last 18 league games, the longest ongoing unbeaten run in the Bundesliga.

They are also currently on a 26-game unbeaten run away from home in the competition (W19 D7). Should they avoid defeat against Wolfsburg, Alonso could equal the longest unbeaten run away from home for a Bundesliga coach, currently held by Udo Lattek (27 consecutive away games without defeat from 1985 to 1992).

Fresh from Wednesday's extra-time victory over second-tier Cologne that secured a spot in the DFB-Pokal semi-finals, Alonso said on Friday that he has tried to give his players enough time to recover.

"[Saturday] is important because after [that] we have a different dynamic. We don't have matches every three days," Alonso told a press conference.

"[Saturday] is the big, big last effort in this intense phase. We will give it everything, and we are fully focused. The mood of the team is good.

"We have reached the Cup [DFB-Pokal] semi-final, but for us, the Bundesliga is the most important competition... and we have a tough away game now."

The Spaniard gave his players Thursday off in a bid to keep them fresh for Saturday's league match, with his team, who romped to the title last season without losing a game, in second place, six points behind leaders Bayern Munich.

Leverkusen have also advanced to the Champions League round of 16, avoiding the need for a two-legged playoff, which was not the case for fellow Champions League clubs Bayern and Borussia Dortmund, who missed out on automatic qualification.

"We decided to relieve some of the tension and instead train," Alonso said.

"We will check how every player is feeling. I have some ideas but have not yet taken any decision."