Matchday 5 of the UEFA Champions League proved a memorable one for Bayer Leverkusen, who travelled to the Etihad Stadium with a gameplan that was executed to perfection, resulting in Kasper Hjulmand’s side running out 2-0 winners against the Premier League club.
Alejandro Grimaldo continued his excellent form, scoring his eighth goal for Leverkusen across all competitions this season, the most of any player for the club in the current campaign- the Spaniard doubling last season’s tally. Where Ibrahim Maza and Aleix Garcia excelled in central-midfield, it was Patrik Schick who doubled Leverkusen’s lead with a pinpoint header.
Post-match, Get German Football News had an opportunity to speak to Simon Rolfes, who discussed Leverkusen’s maturity and what the team had learned from defeats against Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain.
We also spoke to B04’s Mark Flekken – who put in a Man of the Match performance – who commented on the chemistry with his defence.
While Bayer Leverkusen defied the odds, how did Germany’s other clubs perform?
Borussia Dortmund 4-0 Villarreal: Niko Kovac’s side swept aside the Spanish outfit with Serhou Guirassy netting a brace and Karim Adeyemi silencing his critics. Daniel Svensson also got in on the action with BVB’s fourth deep into stoppage time.
Arsenal 3-1 Bayern Munich: Two of Europe’s elite clubs met at the Emirates. Jurrien Timber opened the scoring midway through the first half before teenage sensation Lennart Karl netted his second Champions League goal. But despite an evenly-contested first 45, Arsenal were a step above after the break with Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli securing a 3-1 win for the Gunners. It was a night to forget for Harry Kane, who had the fewest touches of any player, while failing to register a single shot.
Eintracht Frankfurt 0-3 Atalanta: It was a night to forget for the Hessen club, who conceded three goals in a five minute spell in the second half. Eintracht’s top scorer, Jonathan Burkardt, also suffered a calf injury and is sidelined until further notice.
Go Ahead Eagles 0-4 Stuttgart: VfB picked up their third win in five games with an emphatic display against Dutch opposition. Jamie Leweling scored a 15 minute brace before goals from Bilal El Khannouss and Badredine Bouanani secured an impressive win.
Viktoria Plzeň 0-0 Freiburg: In a game that produced 28 shots, points were shared with neither team able to find the back of the net. It does mean that SCF remain unbeaten in this season’s Europa League, while they sit pretty in fourth after five games.
Universitatea Craiova 1-0 Mainz: Despite dominating possession, Bo Henriksen’s side suffered a defeat against Romanian opposition. Assad Al Hamlawi scored from the spot as Mainz suffered their first defeat in this season’s UEFA Conference League.
