Werkself Review #B04FCA: ‘Football is brutal sometimes’

Summary: Late goal after promising display

Bayer 04 controlled the game from the start on Bundesliga Matchday 30. They needed only 12 minutes for Patrik Schick to head in Edmond Tapsoba’s cross and open the scoring, but Augsburg responded almost immediately with their first attack of note as Fabian Rieder’s shot deflected in. The visitors struggled to get out of their own half as the Werkself created chance after chance, but opportunities came and went, with the likes of Nathan Tella, Alejandro Grimaldo, Ibrahim Maza, Schick and substitute Christian Kofane all failing to beat Finn Dahmen. After referee Benjamin Brand overturned a Werkself penalty for handball in the 85th minute, he then pointed to the spot at the other end for a foul, with Rieder netting again in the 97th minute to earn Augsburg victory.

• Our match report
• Highlights

Quansah on support: ‘Great how we stick together’

“They were incredible today and supported us the entire time. They were still behind us after the game and motivated us for the coming game,” defender Quansah explained of the rallying cries from the crowd after the match. “They told us to take the energy with us. I know we’ll need them on Wednesday and they’ll be there for us. It’s an important phase of the season. It’s great how we stick together.”

Reaction: ‘Tried everything but the ball wouldn’t go in’

“We played with so much dominance and had so many big chances, so it’s frustrating for me and the team that we couldn’t score more than one goal today,” said Hjulmand of the game’s events. However, he was still able to draw some positives despite the result. “When I see how we played, I feel good. The fans also gave incredible support until the end. Football is brutal sometimes, ending up losing a game despite such a good performance. We’ll analyse now what we can do better and look ahead,” the Dane added.

“We tried everything but the ball just wouldn’t go in,” Aleix García said, with Mark Flekken concurring: “We didn’t play badly and created lots of chances.” Like Hjulmand, the Dutch goalkeeper also saw positives to take into the coming weeks. Quansah, meanwhile, stated, “We need to take this defeat as motivation and take the energy into the coming games.”

What the papers say: ‘Dominant from the start’

kicker’s summary of the game was that “Leverkusen lost at home to Augsburg despite many chances”, also describing the Werkself as “dominant from the start”. Bild wrote of a “frustrating 2-1 loss”, while the Rheinische Post also pointed out that the team had “over 30 shots” in defeat.

Personnel: Tapsoba in top form

Two players made their returns from injury in Quansah and Lucas Vázquez. Quansah hadn’t played since the 3-3 draw at Heidenheim at the end of March; Vázquez last played in the 4-0 win over St. Pauli in February.

Tapsoba also continued his good recent form. His assist was his eighth goal contribution this season, doubling his total from his first six Bundesliga seasons with the Werkself. Schick’s goal was his fourth with his head in 2026 – the most of any player in the league this calendar year.

Stats: Leverkusen dominance

Bayer 04 again started the game well and got their 10th goal inside the first 15 minutes – a league high. Their total of 35 shots was also the most by any team in the Bundesliga this season. Hjulmand’s side had 71 percent possession – reaching as high as 86 percent in the first 15 minutes – and completed 92 percent of passes compared to Augsburg’s 78 percent.

Up next: Big cup and league fixtures

The last midweek fixture of the season comes on Wednesday as Bayer 04 host Bayern Munich in the semi-final of the DFB Pokal (20:45 CEST). There’s then the away derby in the Bundesliga at Köln on Saturday (15:30).