Back
13.04.2023Europa League

1-1 – Werkself earn draw in quarter-final first leg

All to play for in the second leg: Thanks to a late equaliser from Florian Wirtz (83'), the Werkself avoid defeat against Union Saint-Gilloise in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final tie. In front of full house at the BayArena, Victor Boniface opened the scoring to give the visitors from Belgium the lead (51'). The game ended in a 1-1 draw.
crop_20230413_JS_B04_USG_1799.jpg

Head coach Xabi Alonso made one change from the line-up in the 3-1 home win against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga: Piero Hincapie moved back from the left flank into defence to replace Odilon Kossounou with Mitchel Bakker starting on the left wing in place of Hincapie.

numerous Chances, no goals

The visitors from Union Saint-Gilloise tried to disrupt the Leverkusen defence in build-up play from the first minute. However, the hosts always remained tight on their opponents and looked to get forward quickly. Possession again and again went to Bayer 04. The first shot from the Werkself at the goal of USG keeper Anthony Moris posed a threat (8'): Florian Wirtz was picked out with a long ball from Amine Adli and he dribbled past several opponents before attempting to shoot from the edge of the box but his low shot went just wide of the right-hand post. The team under head coach Alonso dominated in the following minutes and controlled the game. The Black and Reds again and again combined well in front of the Belgian goal but they were unable to make the final pass up to that point.

crop_20230413_NB_B04_vs_Union_Saint_Gilloise_69769.jpg

The Belgian side were undaunted and had their best chance on the half-hour mark: Victor Boniface broke down the left flank beating Jeremie Frimpong and Edmond Tapsoba. Lukas Hradecky saw his first action as he saved a low shot heading for the far corner. The resulting corner from Teddy Teuma was diverted towards goal by Jonathan Tah ended up on the crossbar (29'). Then there were chances for both sides: Moussa Diaby tried a long-range effort a minute later and five minutes before half-time Wirtz set up teammate Hincapie but the header from the Ecuadorian only hit the side netting (40'). The two sides went into half-time with the scoreline at 0-0.

Wirtz levels

The visitors made a flying start to the second half: Boniface gained possession on the left flank and he succeeded in shooting into the far corner of the net to give Saint-Gilloise a 1-0 lead (51'). The visitors appeared to have the upper hand with the Belgians organised in defence after taking the lead as they again and again broke down the Leverkusen attacks and forced the hosts into misplaced passes. The Werkself found it difficult to create promising opportunities but remained committed to the task. The Black and Reds approach the opposition goal again and again as the game went on. The best chances fell to Hincapie (66') as well as Frimpong with headers but both went over the bar (78').

crop_20230413_NB_B04_vs_Union_Saint_Gilloise_70072.jpg

The efforts of the Werkself were finally rewarded with eight minutes to play: Substitute Sardar Azmoun played the ball back to Wirtz on the edge of the box and the 19-year-old hit a shot into the bottom right corner to deservedly level at 1-1. The Werkself pressed for the winner in added time but failed to find the back of the net. The match ended in a 1-1 draw. Leverkusen remain unbeaten after a run of seven wins on the bounce.

Wolfsburg then quarter-final second leg

The Werkself return to league action on Sunday 16 April: Leverkusen are away to VfL Wolfsburg at the Volkswagen Arena with the kick-off at 19.30 CEST. The second leg of the quarter-final in the Europa League at Union Saint-Gilloise is in exactly seven days time on Thursday 20 April. The kick-off at the Lotto Park in Belgium is at 21.00 CEST.

Match stats:

Bayer 04: Hradecky – Tapsoba, Tah, Hincapie - Frimpong, Palacios (Demirbay 46’), Andrich, Bakker - Diaby ( Hlozek 86’), Wirtz - Adli (Azmoun 67’)

Saint-Gilloise: Moris – Nieuwkoop, Kandouss, Burgess, Van Der Heyden - Amani, Lynen (El Azzouzi 80’), Lapoussin - Vertessen (Puertas 75’), Teuma, Boniface (Nilsson 89’)

Goals: 0-1 Boniface (51’), 1-1 Wirtz (82’)

Booked: Hincapie – Van Der Heyden, Lapoussin, Moris

Referee: Ivan Kruzliak (Slovakia)

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

Related News

Bayer 04 gegen Inter Mailand
Champions League - 12.11.2024

Tickets for UCL home game against Inter Milan

In the third home fixture in the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League campaign, the Werkself entertain the Italian champions Inter Milan at the BayArena. The game on Matchday 6 is on Tuesday, 10 December (kick-off: 21.00 CET). Read on for the information on ticket sales for this game.

Show more
Rolfes
Bayer 04 - 11.11.2024

Trophy Tour in Brazil – Rolfes: ‘Engage with fans all over the world on a personal level’

Trophies on Tour: The Bayer 04 delegation led by sporting managing director Simon Rolfes is set to take the Trophy Tour to Brazil. Ahead of the first events tomorrow, 12 November, Bayer04.de spoke to Simon Rolfes prior to the flight to São Paulo about the motivation for the tour, the planned events and the long-standing connection between Bayer 04 and Brazil.

Show more
Torjubel der Bayer 04-Frauen
Women - 10.11.2024

Sixth win in nine games: Women beat Turbine Potsdam

A sixth win in the ninth game of the season for the Bayer 04 Women: After a dominant performance against newcomers Turbine Potsdam, the team under coach Roberto Pätzold are hard on the heels of the leading trio in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga. In the 3-0 home win at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium, the Werkself goals were scored by Kristin Kögel (4’), Cornelia Kramer (13’) and Lilla Turanyi (62’). Leverkusen remain in fourth place on 20 points two points behind league leaders VfL Wolfsburg and level-pegging with Eintracht Frankfurt and Bayern Munich.

Show more
crop_20241109_JS1_8020.jpg
Bundesliga - 10.11.2024

Werkself review #BOCB04: ‘We have to learn how to deal with taking the lead'

Once again in the current Bundesliga campaign, Bayer 04 concede late and draw. The 1-1 scoreline between Bayer 04 and VfL Bochum, who produced a fighting display under new coach Dieter Hecking to secure their second point of the season, is the third draw for the Werkself in succession. Xabi Alonso and the team led by captain Lukas Hradecky clearly expressed their dissatisfaction after the game. Reaction, stats and facts can be found here in the Werkself review.

Show more