"The first game is always difficult. At the start you could see Jena were more competitive after their cup game. So, it is even better and more pleasing that we were able to win the game so convincingly. But you can also see that we need to work on a number of areas," said Achim Feifel. Lisanne Gräwe, who scored to make it 2-0, commented on her powerful strike from distance: "I didn't think I'd hit the ball so well. It simply went right."
There had been constant rainfall in Jena in the days before the game so it was touch-and-go in the morning whether the match at the Ernst Abbe Sportfeld would be played. In the end, the pitch in Thuringia was playable. Bayer 04 coach Achim Feifel opted to play Anna Klink in goal: The keeper led out the team as captain in the absence of the injured Jessica Wich and Nina Brüggemann with Friederike Abt, the new shot-stopper signed from Wolfsburg, on the bench.
Bayer 04 took the initiative away to the newly promoted club and pressed the opposition early in their build-up play. The first chance fell to Verena Wieder but her effort in pouring rain flew well wide of the target (2'). Jena relied on quick counter-attacks and created a good goalscoring opportunity but Klink, who was unable to hold on to the first effort from Birkholz, reacted brilliantly to save the follow-up shot from Graser (7'). At the other end, the lively Gräwe was picked out with a fine pass by Wieder but Milena Nikolic was unable to convert her effort from the cross from the right (16'). The Jena keeper Schuldt did not have any problems saving a long-range effort from Caroline Siems (21').
Leverkusen were clearly on top but initially found it difficult to create clear-cut chances in and around the opposition box. Until the 28th minute: Lara Marti crossed from the right, Nikolic skilfully played a dummy and Zeller put the ball in the back of the net with a slight deflection off Weiß for the deserved lead. Jena had a chance from a free kick when Irina Pando first went unpunished for bringing down Arnold in the box and Heuschkel hit the right-hand post (38'). Bayer 04 took the narrow lead into the half-time break.
After the restart, Pando had the chance to double the lead but the shot from the Swiss lacked power and did not pose any problems for Schuldt (47'). Jena endeavoured to up the pressure but Klink confidently dealt with an effort from Graser (55'). Achim Feifel made an attacking substitution bringing on Amira Arfaoui for right-back Marti (61'). That was immediately followed by a bombshell: Gräwe hit a powerful shot from 25 yards out and the ball flew under the bar to make it 2-0 – a wonder goal (62').
Bayer 04 had taken the steam out of the opposition – and they extended their lead. A diagonal shot from Nikolic was turned away for a corner by Schuldt (68') but there was no way of stopping a left-foot shot from Kristin Kögel into the far corner from a great pass from Juliane Wirtz – 3-0 (69') and the deserved reward for good performance by the impressive stabilising influence in Black and Red.
The agile Arfaoui Then produced an impressive example of her strength in dribbling by beating five opponents but then she fluffed her shot (71'). Leverkusen were in complete control of the ball and the opposition. Achim Feifel made a another four changes in the final quarter of an hour as his team comfortably held on to their lead.
Bayer 04 are back in action in the FLYERALARM Women's Bundesliga with a home game at the Haberland Stadium against SGS Essen. The kick-off on Sunday 5 September is at 14.30 CEST.
Match stats:
Jena: Schuldt – Weiß, Heuschkel, Breitenbach (Paulsen 18'), Woldmann – Birkholz (Görlitz 55'), Graser, Walter, Schumacher (Grajkevci 78') – Mori, Arnold
Bayer 04: Klink – Marti (Arfaoui 61'), Turanyi (Friedrich 86'), Wirtz, Siems (Sahlmann 75') – Gräwe – Wieder, Kögel (Zdebel 86’), Zeller, Pando (Blagojevic 75’) – Nikolic
Goals: 0-1 Zeller (28’), 0-2 Gräwe (62’), 0-3 Kögel (69’)
Referee: Angelika Söder (Ingolstadt)
Booked: Walter, Görlitz
Attendance: 300
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