Leverkusen, Girona and surprise league leaders

A collection of Europe’s major leagues have had surprise league leaders topping the tables this season. The Athletic’s Michael Cox, Mark Carey and Thom Harris join Ali Maxwell to explore… Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen. What do they do in and out of possession, how have their new signings settled in and can they sustain it to beat Bayern Munich to the Bundesliga? We also talk about an even bigger surprise in La Liga. At time of recording Girona top La Liga by two points ahead of Real Madrid with former Rayo Vallecano coach Michel performing a minor miracle for the Catalan minnows. There’s also a nice nod to… Nice. They aren’t top but have hovered around second place in Ligue 1 this season with a collection of players who really hit the “oh yeah that guy, he’s still around” spot.   Produced by Steve Hankey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices