It was a one-sided encounter at the start between the two UEFA Europa League teams. The Werkself attacked SCF for the first time after 50 seconds and dominated the game throughout the first half. Leverkusen earned a deserved lead after the half-hour mark against a very defensive Freiburg team with Florian Wirtz scoring the opener after a brilliant solo run in the opposition box (36'). The Black and Reds stayed on the front foot in search of the next goal. That came in the second half from Jonas Hofmann with the help of the left upright and the SCF keeper Noah Atubolu (60'). The up to that point harmless visitors pulled a goal back on 70 minutes to make it 2-1 and the game was more open at the end. Freiburg were more adventurous and created a few chances. The Black and Reds sealed the home win thanks to a focused defensive performance. The match report is HERE.
Head coach Xabi Alonso summed up the game as follows: "It was an interesting game for me today. After conceding we didn't play brilliantly but instead suffered. That's a lesson for the future. We take the three points, carry on and learn from it." Hofmann was also happy with the next home win after the final whistle and he added: "We made it unnecessarily exciting in the second half. We are glad we were able to win. Freiburg are not easy to play against."
Captain Lukas Hradecky declared: "You cannot win every game 3-0 or 4-0. These wins are equally important and sometimes they even feel a bit better. The Finland keeper had particularly emphatic words of praise for the mentally strong performance of his team: "We enjoy our football and have fun. We work hard. Overall this team is the strongest I've seen since I've been at Leverkusen."
The media were unanimous in their verdict. The Rheinische Post in their match report talked about the Werkself who "really boxed in" their opponents at the start but later found themselves in an "open" match. The Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger identified a "total dominance" by the Werkself who "controlled proceedings at will” for long periods but ended up having to "fret" about the win.
The Süddeutsche Zeitung provided a short and sharp assessment: "Bayer played, Freiburg defended." In addition, they described the Werkself as the "deserved winners," who showed "overwhelming superiority" in the first half while Freiburg displayed a "radical concept of match avoidance." The Süddeutsche Zeitung also described the Werkself saying they put moves together in "tiny spaces in a Spanish way."
The match against Freiburg was the 50th game in charge of the Black and Reds for Alonso and the win also broke a special record: Since Bayer 04 were promoted to the Bundesliga in 1979, the Spaniard is the first Werkself head coach to win eight games in succession. Edmond Tapsoba made his 150th appearance for Leverkusen.
It was no surprise that Wirtz was named man of the match and he received great praise from his team-mates after the game. Alonso declared: "I've not seen a goal like Flo's that often. There are things I can't teach him. We'll talk about that goal for a long time." Hradecky said: "He's a nightmare for every keeper. He opened up the game for us."
The comparison of statistics reflects the course of the game. The Werkself dominated in all areas in the first half. 12 to 2 shots on goal, 9 to 0 corners and 82% possession underlined the dominant performance in the first 45. The more open game towards the end did produce a more balanced second half but the statistics still favoured the Werkself overall. The Werkself played 725 passes (compared with 294 for Freiburg) and they had a pass completion of 90% (75% for Freiburg).
The games come thick and fast for the Werkself: The Black and Reds play third division SSV Sandhausen in the second round of the DFB Pokal on Wednesday 1 November (kick-off: 18.00 CET). That is followed three days later by the next fixture on the road: Leverkusen are away to TSG Hoffenheim on Saturday 4 November (kick-off: 15.30 CET) on Bundesliga matchday ten.
Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and Bayer 04 loanee Francis Onyeka are part of Germany's final squad for the U19 European Championships this summer. The tournament is in Wales from 24 June to 12 July.
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