Bayer Leverkusen's Bundesliga Invincibles started preparing for their final two tasks of the season on Monday while sporting director Simon Rolfes was busy planning the future.
Leverkusen are the first team to go through an entire Bundesliga season without a defeat, and they are also yet to lose in the Europa League and the German Cup, where they face Italy's Atalanta on Wednesday and Kaiserslautern on Saturday in the finals.
No European team has ever gone through a season unbeaten in all competitions since continental matches were introduced in the mid-1950s.
Leverkusen's unbeaten run stands at 51 matches, which is already a European record, and while repeating the extraordinary feat next term appears unlikely, Rolfes is already working on how to improve Xabi Alonso's side for matches in next season's new-look Champions League with more matches, and for domestic action.
"We will try to bring freshness into the squad and create new dynamics," Rolfes told dpa in an interview.
"But the majority of the structure will remain, so there will certainly be no rebuilding on the scale of last year."
Granit Xhaka, Victor Boniface, Alejandro Grimaldo und Jonas Hofmann arrived last summer and were key players in the remarkable run this term.
Rolfes said that the club's perception has changed through the winning run and the presence of Alonso, who arrived in October 2022.
"The perception of Bayer Leverkusen in Europe has changed overall as a result of this season. But I wouldn't quantify the boost that much, because we signed players last summer who we wouldn't have had the opportunity to sign four years ago," he said.
At the same time, the big success has also generated interest from big clubs in Leverkusen players, with especially Jonathan Tah and Jeremie Frimpong subject of transfer speculation.
"Interest, no matter in whom, is always a sign of success. That's why it's not a problem," Rolfes said.