0-0 draw with Olympiacos puts Werkself in Champions League Round of 16

Following the 1-0 defeat at Union Berlin, head coach Kasper Hjulmand made five changes to his starting XI for the second leg of the play-off in the Champions League. Jarell Quansah started in central defence in place of the injured Loïc Badé, while Lucas Vázquez took over from Arthur on the right and Exequiel Palacios replaced Ezequiel Fernández in defensive midfield. Up front, Jonas Hofmann made his first UCL appearance of the season in place of Malik Tillman, while Patrik Schick, scorer of the double in the first leg, came into the team for Christian Kofane.

Good Start – goalless at half-time

As expected, Olympiacos tried to put Bayer 04 under pressure from the outset by pressing hard. The Black and Reds were not put off as they outplayed the high Greek defence several times in the opening minutes with quick side-to-side moves and, with a little more precision, could have capitalised early on the three opportunities created by Hofmann (4’) and Schick (4’, 6’). As it was, however, the game developed into an evenly-matched affair with the scoreline remaining 0-0. Despite more possession for the Greek side from the middle of the first half onwards, a dogged Werkself managed to keep their opponents away from goal for the most part. As there were also few chances for Bayer 04, the two teams went into the half-time break with no goals scored.

clean sheet secures berth in round of 16

After the restart, it was the visitors who had the first effort on goal in the second half through Gelson Martins - Janis Blaswich made a superb save (47'). His opposite number Kostas Tzolakis would have had no chance a quarter of an hour later of keeping out Alejandro Grimaldo but the Spaniard hit the bar from a tight angle (62') after being put through by substitute Ernest Poku. The Werkself were again disciplined against the fast Greek attack and only conceded shots from distance. Up front it was Robert Andrich who went close in the opposition box with a header over the target (74'). There was jubilation for the Werkself after the final whistle, even without scoring a goal. Thanks to another clean sheet in the UCL - the third in a row - the Black and Reds secured their place in the Champions League Round of 16 for the ninth time.

round of 16 Tickets exclusively for members

Attention Bayer 04 fans: Ticket sales for the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 home match will start on Tuesday, 3 March at 12:00 CET. Only Bayer 04 Club members will have the chance to buy tickets for this match. Not a member yet? No problem! Become a member now and subscribe to the newsletter to make sure you don't miss any important information on Friday 27 February after the draw for the Round of 16 opponents (Arsenal or Bayern Munich).

SIGN UP AS A MEMBER

NEWSLETTER

next up: Mainz then Hamburg

First of all, the Black and Reds continue their Bundesliga campaign. On Saturday afternoon at 15:30 CET, the Werkself will once again take to the pitch at the BayArena to face Mainz 05 on matchday 24. The following Wednesday evening, they will play a rearranged fixture from matchday 17 at Hamburger SV. Kick-off at the Volksparkstadion is at 20:30 CET.

Match stats:

Bayer 04: Blaswich - Quansah, Andrich, Tapsoba - Vázquez (Arthur 77’), Palacios (Fernández 72’), Garcia, Grimaldo - Hofmann (Culbreath 72’), Maza (Poku 56’) - Schick

Olympiacos: Tzolakis - Rodinei, Retsos, Pirola, Ortega - Mouzakitis (Scipioni 79’), Hezze, Dani Garcia (Clayton 89’) - Gelson Martins (Onyemaechi 89’), Chiquinho (André Luiz 66’) - Taremi (El Kaabi 66’)

Yellow card: Pirola

Referee: Michael Oliver (England)​

Attendance: 30,210 (sold out) at the BayArena