U19s win derby in Cologne 2-1

The Werkself U19 team clocked up a 2-1 victory over FC Köln on matchday 4 in the Under-19 Bundesliga West. The Leverkusen youngsters went a goal down early on. The visitors were put under pressure by the aggressive approach of the FC Köln team and they were caught out by a deflected ball into the box that led to the opening goal on two minutes.

The hosts continued to press the ball in their elaborate and intense  style of play but were reticent about going forwards. The Bayer 04 youth team were wide awake as they  sought to gain possession and were rarely threatened on the break. "The lads were very patient," said coach Iraklis Metaxas. "At the same time, we lacked something up front." 

Schreck SCORES BEFORE THE BREAK

The equaliser demonstrated how to master the aggressive approach of the Köln team. After a good move from the back, Sam Schreck was in the right place as he beat three men to the ball to fire in the leveler from the edge of the box on 37 minutes.

The visitors from Leverkusen improved in the second half. "We found a better way of playing the long game against a compact defence," said Metaxas. The U19s went on create good chances on goal but the  Köln youngsters did pose a threat on the break.

WINNER FROM A CORNER

The Bayer 04 U19s netted the decider in the closing stages of the game. Marius Samoura reacted first to a corner into the box and he made no mistake as he made it 2-1 on 78 minutes. The team under coaches Markus von Ahlen and Iraklis Metaxas worked hard to hold on to the lead to secure a third win on the bounce following the 1-0 against Bielefeld and  the 4-0 against Duisburg .

"The match against Bielefeld with the late goal in added time was a bit of a turning point," declared Metaxas looking back a the first competitive fixtures ahead of the international break. "Of course, there's still room for improvement at this early stage of the season but we're moving in the right direction."

FRIENDLY AGAINST St. Pauli

The U19s have a friendly against the St. Pauli youngsters during the international break. The next  Bundesliga game is on 9 September against Preußen Münster (13.00 CET, Ulrich Haberland Stadium,free entrance). The Westphalians sprang a surprise with a 1-1 home draw against FC Schalke 04.

MATCH STATS:
FC Köln U19: Bartels - Goden (Becker 46'), Jakobs, Brackelmann, Sonnenberg, Augusto (Aydin 76'), Bisseck, Rittmüller, Karweina (Katterbach 69'), Ostrak (Schmitt 78'), Churlinov.

Bayer 04 U19: Kucz - Stappmann, Boller, Grym (Schaus 87'), Schreck, Yalcin (Mbay 90+2' ), Tokac (Bukusu 57'), Shala, Samoura, Fragpane (Stanilewicz 78'), Akkaynak.

Goals: 1:0 Ostrak (2.), 1:1 Schreck (37.), 1:2 Samoura (78.).

Booked: Rittmüller, Bisseck -  Boller.
Referee: Schütter (Werl).
Attendance: 225.