Werkself review #B04SVW: Plenty of chances, few goals

Summary: Neck and neck

The game started with good tempo from both sides. Leverkusen in particular created a number of chances with good combination play. However, Patrik Schick, Robert Andrich and Jeremie Frimpong all passed up opportunities. It meant things were goalless going into the break. Kerem Demirbay then gave the Werkself a deserved lead just before the hour with a lovely finish from 20 yards. Yet it appeared to spur on the away side, with Ole Werner’s team starting to find their way through the Bayer 04 defence as the game wore on. And they eventually made the pressure tell when Veljkovic pounced after a corner with eight minutes on the clock. Substitute Sardar Azmoun struck the bar with a header right at the end, meaning it remained 1-1. Read more about the game in our REPORT.

Reaction: “We’re not lacking passion”

Coach Seoane was not pleased with the result when speaking at the post-match press conference. He especially saw the poor chance conversion is key: “We saw different phases of the game, originally had control, created numerical advantages, but didn’t have good timing in the final third and in our shooting.” The 43-year-old added that the team was not “clinical and clear enough. We then didn’t manage to play predominantly in the opposition half, were too defensive instead of pushing forward more. We need to improve there.”

Andrich described the draw as “seriously disappointing” when talking to Werkself TV and agreed with the coach about the inability to take chances being the reason for the current form. “We had a very good first half, created lots of chances that we didn’t take.”

Demirbay also gave a similar assessment: “We’ve been behind on goals all season. It’s not a lack of heart, desire and passion. We’re putting in a lot. We need to keep going. Now we’ve got the international break.”

Personnel: Frimpong active again

Seoane made just one change to his team from the 2-0 win at home to Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League. He went for a 4-2-3-1 formation with the in-form Frimpong replacing Adam Hlozek on the right wing. He was a constant threat with his pace down that side and could have put Leverkusen ahead on 39 minutes but missed from a few yards out.

There was also a special highlight before the game as club legend Lars Bender was officially unveiled as the Werkself’s honorary captain. It saw the former defender receive the official pennant from Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes. The Nordkurve also produced an impressive tifo of black, white and red. You can see Bender’s reaction HERE.

Stats: More possession for the werkself

The stats from the game also show both teams were neck and neck throughout the 90 minutes. They had 19 shots each, while the difference for challenges was also minimal, with the Werkself just edging that category on 51% won. Same for pass completion, where Leverkusen posted a rate of 82%; Werder just one point behind. It was only in possession where Bayer 04 forged ahead, seeing 54% of the ball.

what the papers say: praise for demirbay

Bild summarised the draw by saying: “Leverkusen at odds with their chance conversion as so often in the past.” The Rheinische Post praised Demirbay’s finish for the opening goal: “Demirbay’s wonderful goal provided the sporting highlight of the afternoon at the BayArena,” while describing the game over all with: “Leverkusen actually gave up a string of good chances before Demirbay’s curling effort gave them a 1-0 lead after around an hour. It meant Bremen were able to feed off their known strength and remain dangerous in the closing minutes.”

Outlook: International break then champions

A total of 11 Leverkusen players are off with their national teams over the next week in Charles Aranguiz (Chile), Frimpong and Mitchel Bakker (both Netherlands U21s), Zidan Sertdemir (Denmark U19s), Schick and Hlozek (both Czech Republic), Lukas Hradecky (Finland), Odilon Kossounou (Ivory Coast), Azmoun (Iran), Edmond Tapsoba (Burkina Faso) and Piero Hincapie (Ecuador).

Seoane then takes his side to face Bayern Munich in two weeks. The champions are currently fourth in the Bundesliga after losing 1-0 to Augsburg on Saturday. They had previously drawn their last three league games. The fixture at the Allianz Arena is at 20:30 CEST on Friday, 30 September. The Werkself are then off to Porto in the Champions League on Tuesday, 4 October.