Victor Boniface has spoken of his great respect for Xabi Alonso, saying that the Spaniard is still better at training than he is, despite no longer being an active player.

In an interview with AFP, Bayer Leverkusen striker Victor Boniface has revealed how training with Xabi Alonso helps him to perform at his best.

As Boniface notes, Xabi has "won everything there is to win in football" and the presence of such a highly respected figure in the game is a huge boost for the players.

“Imagine you're training and your coach is doing better than you. Then you want to step up your game. For him to be involved in training gives us a boost,” Boniface told AFP.

“Sometimes he tells me of players he played with, with similar abilities to me. He tries to improve me in my weakest areas.”

Boniface, a childhood Arsenal fan, is already being linked with the next step despite having only joined Bayer Leverkusen from Union Saint-Gilloise last summer. For now, he remains fully focused on the tasks ahead with Die Werkself.

“Right now my full focus is on Leverkusen and being ready to try and achieve more good things with the club,” he told AFP.