Werkself review #B04BMG: Draw 'won't throw us off course'

Summary: Another game of patience

There were three changes in the Werkself line-up from the Leipzig match going into this home game: Matej Kovar was in goal in place of Lukas Hradecky, Robert Andrich was the captain and he played in central defence instead of the suspended Jonathan Tah, and Nadiem Amiri started in a holding midfield role. The Werkself dominated from the kick-off and pressed high up the pitch. Leverkusen held on to the ball and had goalscoring opportunities through Amiri (5’), Jonas Hofmann (18’) and Florian Wirtz. Towards the end of the first half, Alejandro Grimaldo tried his luck as did Hofmann again but the deadlock remained unbroken. After a host of chances minute by minute in the second half it looked like there would be a repeat of the previous matches in Augsburg and Leipzig. However, the Werkself failed to find the back of the net despite great efforts later on. The game ended goalless. The match report.

Reaction: "Luck was missing today"

Head coach Xabi Alonso summed up after the game: "We controlled the game a lot, Gladbach sat back. We will analyse it closely as we can use the game to learn for the future." The Spaniard added: "We remain positive, we have good energy in the team. That's important for the next few weeks." Granit Xhaka was also optimistic after the final whistle: "Perhaps luck was missing today. That happens sometimes. But that won't throw us off course. We carry on! I've heard we made 900 passes with over 90% pass completion. We had our chances despite Gladbach defending so deep. That shows how great the respect is from other teams now."

Andrich also gave an interview after the game: "We're disappointed. You have to turn dominance like that into three points. We had to make sure we didn't get caught on the break. But we were solid at the back. We are satisfied with seven points from three games after the winter break – but also somehow not." Matej Kovar was of a similar opinion: "We had so many chances, we deserved to score a goal. It was one of those days where it just doesn't go in. But we will carry on playing our game."

What the papers say: "Leverkusen fail to take big chances"

According to the kicker, the Foals had to withstand the sheer dominance of the Werkself." The journal’s assessment of the goalless draw from a Black and Red perspective is a "setback" that must "annoy" the Leverkusen team. The Rheinische Post adopted a similar position, mentioning the "superiority" of the Werkself, who "were almost overpowering at times," and they referred to the result as a "surprise." The Bild-Zeitung shares that view: "Bayer can't get the ball over the line." And the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger: "Leverkusen failed to take big chances" against an "ultra-defensive" opponent.

Personnel: League debut for Kovar – Schick clocks up century

Goalkeeper Matej Kovar, who previously played for the Black and Reds in five Europa League games and two matches in the DFB-Pokal, made his first appearance in the Bundesliga. Nadiem Amiri made his first start of the season. Alonso on the Leverkusen number 11: "Nadiem did a good job today with Granit in holding midfield. He has trained very well – of course, the situation isn't easy for him but he has a top attitude and he earned his start." Patrik Schick, who recently played his 100th game for Bayer 04 in the match against Bochum, appeared against the Foals in a Bundesliga fixture for the 100th time. 78 of those games were for the Black and Reds and 22 for RB Leipzig.

Stati: Record number of passes for player and the team

Another record set this term: The Werkself made 948 passes against the Foals and that's a new record for a team in the Bundesliga this season. 151 were made by Xhaka – the highest number in the game for a Leverkusen player this term. And the other stats demonstrate the dominance of the Black and Reds: The Werkself had 75% possession with over 80% at times. 28 shots to 4 also speaks for itself. But Leverkusen failed to score – the first time in a match this season. On the other hand, Bayer 04 kept a clean sheet for the ninth time and are the only team to do so in the current league campaign.

Outlook: First Darmstadt, then cup tie against Stuttgart

Next up for the Black and Reds is an away fixture at SV Darmstadt 98 on Bundesliga Matchday 20. The game is on Saturday 3 February (kick-off: 15.30 CET) at the Merck Stadium am Böllenfalltor. That is followed three days later by the DFB Pokal quarter-final against VfB Stuttgart. The tie is on Tuesday 6 February with the kick-off at the BayArena at 20.45.