Head coach Xabi Alonso made eight changes to his starting XI from the 2-2 draw at Werder Bremen. Jonathan Tah, Edmond Tapsoba and Granit Xhaka remained in the side. Unavailable were the injured Amine Adli and Jeanuel Belocian plus the suspended Martin Terrier.
Just 74 seconds into the game and the Bayer 04 fans were able to celebrate for the first time at a sold-out BayArena: Patrik Schick received a low cross from Nathan Tella and he slotted the ball into the bottom left corner for the opening goal (2'). The Werkself dominated the game from the start with accurate passing and high concentration. Nicolas Kristof pulled off a good save to prevent Schick doubling his tally. However, shortly after that the SVE keeper was helpless as Schick netted his second goal: The Czechia international converted a cross from Jonas Hofmann from close range in typical striker fashion (9'). The game settled down after that until the Werkself scored the third goal on the night.
With 36 minutes on the clock, Aleix Garcia stepped up to take a free kick from 25 metres out in a central position and he hit the ball into the top left corner to make it 3-0. That was the first competitive goal for the Spanish newcomer. At the other end, Matej Kovar was tested just before half-time when he saved a shot from a Elias Baum (44'). As the keeper did his job with the same conviction as the players in front of him, the Black and Reds went into half-time with a well-deserved 3-0 lead.
The second half took off after a tricky situation in the Leverkusen penalty area that Kovar and Co. were able to deal with together (56'). Initially there were no worthwhile chances for the holders. With 20 minutes to play, Alonso brought on fresh legs in the shape of Alejandro Grimaldo and Florian Wirtz followed by Robert Andrich and Victor Boniface. The substitutes Grimaldo (86') and Wirtz (90+3') missed the chance to make it 4-0 in the closing stages, before Francis Onyeka – at Bayer 04 from the age of seven – came on to make his first-team debut. A fitting conclusion to a successful DFB Pokal night at the BayArena.
The draw for the Round of 16 is on Sunday, 3 November, on ARD from 19.10 CET.
Bayer 04 are next in action on Friday, 1 November, with the top Bundesliga match against VfB Stuttgart. Kick-off at the BayArena is at 20.30 CET. That is followed by the Champions League encounter at Liverpool on Tuesday, 5 November with the kick-off at 21.00 CET. The games before the final international break of the year are completed with a Bundesliga away fixture at VfL Bochum (Saturday, 9 November, 15.30 CET).
Match stats:
Bayer 04: Kovar - Mukiele, Tah, Tapsoba - Arthur (Onyeka 86'), Palacios, Xhaka (Wirtz 69'), Tella (Grimaldo 69') - Hofmann (Andrich 79'), Garcia - Schick (Boniface 79')
Elversberg: Kristof - Baum, Pinckert, Rohr, Neubauer - Sicker (Zimmerschied 69'), Sickinger - Petkov (Feil 46'), Damar (Schmahl 46’) - Asllani (Stock 59’), Schnellbacher (Gerezgiher 46’)
Goals: 1-0 Schick (2’), 2-0 Schick (9’), 3-0 Garcia (36’)
Booked: Tapsoba - Pinckert
Referee: Benjamin Brand (Unterspiesheim)
Attendance: 29,787 at the BayArena
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