4–0 at Lech Poznan – Werkself extend winning run on European stage

For the first Europa League away match of the season, head coach Carles Martínez made six changes to his starting XI compared with the 4-3 win in Mainz. At the atmospheric Poznan Stadium, the Werkself – playing in the black European kit – set about controlling the game with the ball from the outset. Nathan Tella, making his first start since early May, fired off an early warning shot after five minutes. Captain Edmond Tapsoba headed just over shortly after that (8’). The visitors – like Poznan – were forced into an early substitution due to injury, with Patrik Schick replacing his team-mate Martin Terrier, but succeeded in gaining the upper hand.

Schick scores twice from the penALty spot

By this point, a good 20 minutes had passed when something unusual happened on the pitch: in the middle of a Leverkusen attack, the sprinklers popped up from the ground, forcing the match to be halted. After a brief, quieter spell of play, a shot by Ibrahim Maza on 26 minutes was suddenly met with protests – the Werkself players spotted a handball by substitute Terry Yegbe in the Poznan penalty area. After referee Milos Milanovic reviewed the incident on the pitchside monitor, he pointed to the spot. Schick stepped up and coolly slotted the ball into the right-hand corner to give his side a 1–0 lead (29’). The Bundesliga side were on the front foot – and extended their lead just three minutes later with Malik Tillman scoring from close range.

And the Werkself kept on going. Following a corner, Schick went down in the opposition penalty area; after reviewing the video footage once more, the referee awarded another penalty. Same situation, different corner: Schick slotted it home – 3–0 (41’). The teams went into the break shortly afterwards with the score at 3–0.

action drops off - Maza increases lead

Even the quarter-hour half-time break did not initially disrupt the Leverkusen flow of play; the Polish champions were struggling to cope with the visitors’ quick, interlinked passing game. However, this dominance did not initially translate into clear-cut chances. So, just over an hour into the match, Martínez brought on fresh legs in Moussa Diaby, Facundo Medina and Robert Andrich. The latter immediately had a go from distance (64'). The pace of the game slowed considerably compared with the first 45. The Werkself remained firmly in control and took no unnecessary risks. Substitute Afonso Moreira tried his luck three times in the space of a few minutes (83’, 84’, 86’). However, it was the yet again impressive Ibrahim Maza, who once again caught the eye, with his goal sealing a commanding 4–0 victory (89').

next up: league leaders coming to town

The Werkself league campaign continues with a clash against SC Freiburg. The game at the BayArena, on Sunday 18 October, kicks off at 15:30 CEST. Any remaining tickets for the match against the current Bundesliga leaders are available HERE. The Black and Reds then continue the European campaign in Greece, where they face OFI Crete on Thursday 22 October (kick-off: 18:45 CEST).

Match stats:

Lech Poznan: Lis – Pereira, Mońka (Yegbe 15’), Skrzypczak, Gurgul – Berggren (Rodríguez 74’), Kozubal – Walemark (Hakans 60’), Palma, Bengtsson (Jagiello 60’) – Ishak (Agnero 60’)

Bayer 04: Flekken – Vázquez, Badé, Tapsoba, Gutiérrez (Medina 62’) – Garcia (Andrich 62’), Fernández – Tillman, Tella (Diaby 62’) – Terrier (Schick 18’, Moreira 76’), Maza

Goals: 0–1 Schick (29’ pen.), 0–2 Tillman (32’), 0–3 Schick (41’ pen.), 0–4 Maza (89’)

Yellow cards: Skrzypczak – Andrich, Diaby

Referee: Milos Milanovic (Serbia)