U19s suffer first defeat in UCL Youth League at Benfica

Head coach Kevin Brok had to make five changes from the 1-1 draw at Borussia Dortmund in the league. Ben Hawighorst, Nebe Domnic and Osman Turay (all with the Germany squad at the U17 World Cup in Qatar) and Ferdinand Pohl and Montrell Culbreath (in the senior squad for the Champions League game) were replaced by Burak Kir, Nils Gernhardt, Melis Djedovic, Marton Szep and Noah Probst from the U17s. Bayer 04 went into the clash with Benfica with seven points from their previous three games. Benfica previously defeated Qarabag (7-1) and Newcastle United (5-1) but also lost 5-2 against Chelsea.

Benfica double whammy before half-time

The home side started the match on the front foot and dominated possession, while Leverkusen were initially preoccupied with defending as they relied on creating chances on the break. The Portuguese side's first noteworthy chance promptly found its way into the Bayer 04 goal. Duarte Soares shot low from outside the penalty area, Goncalo Moreira got his foot to it in the centre and deflected it past the keeper (9'). Shortly after that, Leverkusen had a goalscoring opportunity after gaining possession with some good pressing. However, they were unable to capitalise on the situation (14’). Nor were they able to exploit a strong solo run by Jonah Berghoff across half the pitch (23’). At the other end, Jesper Schlich kept out another deflected shot heading for the corner of the net, while Coletta's follow-up shot hit the post (29'). The Bayer 04 defence was beaten for a second time before half-time. Benfica played a one-two to break through the Bayer 04 defence and Moreira slotted into the far corner to complete his brace (40'). Francisco Silva made it 3-0 from a corner (43') and the half-time whistle sounded shortly after that.

benfica round off the scoring

The second half began with one substitution for both sides. Benfica then scored again at 4-0 three minutes after the restart through Eduardo Fernandes from an acute angle (48') and Gil Neves increased the lead to 5-0 seven minutes later (55'). On 61 minutes, Schlich prevented Goncalo Moreira making 6-0. At the other end, Bayer 04 struggled to pose a threat on the home side's goal. As the game progressed, both teams made numerous changes, which was one of the reasons why the game lacked a certain flow. As a result, there was no more noteworthy action until the final whistle.

Head coach Kevin Brok summarised after the final whistle: "Benfica played well and didn't give us many chances. But I have to compliment the lads on the way they fought and worked right to the end. That was a really good attitude! We're aware of our squad situation, but that's not an excuse and it's not the only reason. Benfica are a good team, they always do a good job with young talent and have top players."

coming up: away to manchester city at end of November

The Bayer 04 U19s will not play again until three weeks after the international break when they take on their next Youth League opponents. The Werkself are away to Manchester City on matchday 5 on Tuesday, 25 November (kick-off: 15:00 GMT, 16:00 CET).

Match stats:

Benfica: D. Ferreira - Soares, Oliveira, R. Silva (Ndembi 77’), Semedo - Freitas (I. Ferreira 56’), Neves, Moreira (Afonso 66’) - Coletta, F. Silva (G. Ferreira 46’), Fernandes (Rodrigues 66’)

Bayer 04: Schlich - Kurowski, Kir (Datene 46’), Probst, Gernhardt - Djedovic, Berghoff, N. Mensah (Papadakis 66’), Massek (Minutillo 85’) - Izekor (Ermec 65’), Szep (Hololobov 65’)

Goals: 1-0 Moreira (9'), 2-0 Moreira (40'), 3-0 F. Silva (43’), 4-0 Fernandes (48’), 5-0 Neves (55’)

Yellow cards: Freitas, F. Silva - Kir

Referee: Sam Barrott (England)

Attendance: 538 at the Benfica Campus in Seixal