Tag: Bayer Leverkusen

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One of the best nights of my life – Lookman says after giving Atlanta hattrick Europa win

Lookman

Soccer man of the moment, Ademola Lookman, has described Wednesday night as one of the best of his life.

It was a night he helped Atlanta win their first-ever Europa League title, scoring a historical hattrick that millions of people are now talking about.

They shocked Bayer Leverkusen which had hitherto remained unbeaten a whole season.

“One of the best nights of my life. Amazing performance from the team,” said Lookman.

“We’ve got to celebrate, we made history tonight.”

The victory the Nigerian star gave his club is more expansive in the sense that it recorded their first goal and trophy in a European final on Wednesday night at the Aviva Stadium, Dublin.

As ‘The Punch’ reports, the team claimed their first trophy in 61 years.

Lookman became the first player to score a hat-trick in a European final since 1975 to secure Atalanta’s first-ever continental trophy.

The goals from Lookman came at pivotal moments in the match—scoring in the 12th, 26th, and 75th minutes.

Europa League on its X account posted, “Lookman becomes the first player to score a hat-trick in a Europa League final.”

His exceptional performance was instrumental in leading Atalanta to this historic triumph against a Leverkusen team that had recently clinched the Bundesliga title and was a strong favourite heading into the game.

This win caps a remarkable season for Atalanta under coach Gian Piero Gasperini, who praised his team’s resilience and preparation leading up to the final.

Leverkusen, despite their impressive unbeaten run and recent domestic success, were unable to secure the treble, with this loss marking a significant setback just days before their German Cup final match.

Bayer Leverkusen, on the other hand, posted on its X, “Today just wasn’t the day. We are incredibly proud of our Europa League journey and all of our fans for taking it with us together.”

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Alonso’s Leverkusen stun Bayern

Exequiel Palacios

Mueez Ajao

– Bayer Leverkusen’s Exequiel Palacios scored two second-half penalties to complete a 2-1 comeback victory over visitors Bayern Munich on Sunday and deny them the Bundesliga lead.

– Bayern were nowhere to be seen at the start with the hosts unleashing a flurry of shots towards Yann Sommer’s goal in the opening 15 minutes.

– They did, however, score against the run of play and with their first shot of the game when Joshua Kimmich’s effort was deflected in after 22 minutes.

Also Read: Dortmund thrash Köln and claim top spot in Bundesliga

– Things, however, took a turn for the worse for Bayern after the break with sloppy defending earning the hosts two penalties.

– Palacios draw them level with a well-taken 55th minute spot kick and then earned another, this time for a foul by Dayot Upamecano.

– The Argentine stepped up again to beat Sommer for a second time and complete the comeback for Xabi Alonso’s team in the 73rd.

– They hung on to victory despite late pressure from the Bavarians and chances from Kinglsey Coman and Matthijs de Ligt.

– Bayern, who face Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-finals next month and are also through to the German Cup last eight, remain in second place on 52 points, one behind leaders Borussia Dortmund, who crushed Cologne 6-1 on Saturday.

– Leverkusen climbed up to eighth on 37.

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Adeyemi and Bellingham guide Dortmund past Leverkusen

Karim Adeyemi and Jude Bellingham

Mueez Ajao

– Borussia Dortmund cruised past hosts Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 on Sunday for their third win in three league matches since the Bundesliga resumed after the winter break, climbing to within three points of the top spot.

Jude Bellingham

– Dortmund’s comfortable victory snapped Leverkusen’s five-game winning run in the Bundesliga, dropping them to ninth place.

Karim Adeyemi

– Germany international Karim Adeyemi rifled in his first Bundesliga goal after a good passing move from Dortmund in the 33rd minute with Leverkusen’s Moussa Diaby having earlier forced a superb save from Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel.

Karim Adeyemi

Also Read: Haller assist and Gio Reina winner hand Dortmund all 3 points

– The keeper had to come to the rescue again three minutes after the restart, stopping both Diaby and Amine Adli in Leverkusen’s double chance to level.

– “Today it was not only an important win but also a deserved one and this is something we liked. We still have a long way to go but this was a good step now,” said Dortmund coach Edin Terzic. “We delivered a solid and strong performance. But don’t make us out to be better than we really are or worse than we are.

– “This win won’t mean much if we don’t keep at it and keep delivering the same performances. We are satisfied with the nine points [from three matches this year].”

– The visitors, who play Chelsea on Feb. 15 in the Champions League Round of 16, then doubled their lead in the 53rd when defender Edmond Tapsoba turned a Marius Wolf cutback into his own goal.

Jude Bellingham

– The Burkina Faso central defender had an evening to forget after almost scoring a second own goal in the 72nd.

– He attempted to clear yet another cutback, this time from Julian Brandt, but instead stabbed it towards goal before Jeremie Frimpong came to the rescue and cleared on the line.

– Dortmund’s third straight victory moved them up to fourth place on 34 points, three off leaders Bayern Munich and one behind third-placed RB Leipzig. Leverkusen are on 24 in ninth place.

Jude Bellingham

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Five-star Frankfurt destroy Leverkusen

Daichi Kamada and Jesper Lindstrom

Mueez Ajao

– Eintracht Frankfurt climbed to fourth in the Bundesliga after thrashing 10-man Bayer Leverkusen 5-1 at home on Saturday, including two goals from the penalty spot by Japan midfielder Daichi Kamada.

– Europa League champions Frankfurt have 17 points after 10 games and trail third-placed Hoffenheim on goal difference. Leverkusen slipped into the relegation zone in 16th, with eight points.

– After a series of missed chances, Leverkusen were awarded a penalty before the break when Jesper Lindstrom was brought down in the box by Edmond Tapsoba.

Also Read: Xabi Alonso wins his first game in charge of Leverkusen

– Forward Randal Kolo Muani took the penalty, which was saved by Lukas Hradecky, but VAR ruled the Leverkusen keeper was off his line, forcing the spot kick to be retaken.

– Kamada took the second attempt and made no mistake to make it 1-0.

– Leverkusen, playing under new coach Xabi Alonso, drew level in the 56th minute through a header from Piero Hincapie after a free-kick, but their joy was short-lived as Kolo Muani made up for his penalty miss with a diving header two minutes later.

– Lindstrom made it 3-1 in the 65th minute with a sublime lob over Hradecky from a tight angle before Kamada scored a 72nd-minute penalty as Hincapie was sent off for picking up a second yellow for his tackle on Kolo Muani in the box.

– Lucas Alario wrapped up the win with a tap-in in the 86th minute, scoring his first league goal for Frankfurt against his former side.

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Xabi Alonso wins his first game in charge of Leverkusen

Xabi Alonso

Mueez Ajao

– Former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso enjoyed a winning start to his managerial career at Bayer Leverkusen as they beat Schalke in the Bundesliga.

– The 40-year-old, previously head coach of Real Sociedad’s B team, was appointed on Wednesday.

Xabi Alonso

– Moussa Diaby drove in the opener in the 38th minute before providing the assist for Jeremie Frimpong to add a second three minutes later.

Also Read: OFFICIAL: Bayer Leverkusen appoint Xabi Alonso as new manager

– Frimpong and Paulinho added further goals after the break.

– Diaby once again provided the assist for Frimpong, who found the bottom corner with a shot inside the box.

– Paulinho capped off a dream debut for Alonso with a close-range finish late on.

– The win is only Bayer Leverkusen’s second of the season and they move up to 14th in the Bundesliga.

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OFFICIAL: Bayer Leverkusen appoint Xabi Alonso as new manager

Xabi Alonso

Mueez Ajao

– Bayer Leverkusen have fired coach Gerardo Seoane and replaced with him with Xabi Alonso.

– The Bundesliga club said Wednesday that they had “parted ways” with the Swiss coach and appointed the 40-year-old former Spain midfielder, who was to be given a contract through June 2024.

– Seoane’s last game in charge was a 2-0 loss at Porto in the Champions League on Tuesday, days after his team were routed 4-0 at Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga.

Also Read: Xabi Alonso linked with Man City job

– Sources told on Tuesday that Alonso had emerged as a leading candidate to replace Seoane over the last week.

– Alonso had been out of work since leaving Real Sociedad B in May after a successful three years in charge. Sources told that he would welcome the challenge of turning around Leverkusen’s season.

Xabi Alonso

– Leverkusen are second from bottom in the German league with just five points from the opening eight rounds. Seoane’s team were also knocked out in the first round of the German Cup by third-division team SV Elversberg.

– Seoane led Leverkusen to third place in the Bundesliga last season after joining from Swiss team Young Boys in 2021.

– Leverkusen said they would present Alonso at a news conference on Thursday.

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Musiala sparkles as Bayern cruise past Leverkusen

Jamal Musiala

Mueez Ajao

– Jamal Musiala scored once and set up two more goals as champions Bayern Munich cruised past Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 on Friday to snap a four-game winless run in the Bundesliga.

– The Germany international delivered a superb performance for a confidence-boosting win ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League group game against Viktoria Plzen and the big Bundesliga match against Borussia Dortmund next weekend.

– “I think it is still too early. We have to play more games like that so we can’t just say now we are back,” Musiala said.

Also Read: Bayern director speaks on Mane’s uninspiring form

– “Everyone in the team wanted to win today. There was pressure on each and everyone of us. We all want to be number one and we showed it today. Pressure is always there at Bayern.”

– In a frenzied start, Musiala set up Leroy Sane for their first goal in the third minute to settle nerves in the Allianz Arena as the Bavarians were desperate to bounce back following their recent dip in form and their longest run without a win in 20 years.

– The 19-year-old attacking midfielder terrorised the Leverkusen defence throughout the game and turned scorer in the 17th after a one-two with Thomas Mueller and a slightly deflected shot.

Jamal Musiala

– He then helped Sadio Mane end his five-game goal drought, picking out the Senegalese in the box who sent another deflected effort past goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky for his first goal in front of a home crowd.

Sadio Mane, Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies

– Musiala has now scored five times in the league and set up three goals.

– The icing on Bayern’s cake came in the 84th minute when Hradecky slipped in the box to send the ball directly into Mueller’s path for their fourth goal.

– The win lifted Bayern into second place in the Bundesliga on 15 points, two behind leaders Union Berlin, who travel to Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.

– Fellow Champions League club, Bayer Leverkusen, who travel to Porto on Tuesday, slumped deeper into trouble, dropping to 16th in the league.

– Coach Gerardo Seoane’s team have won just one of their eight Bundesliga matches so far after finishing in third place last season.

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OFFICIAL: Callum Hudson-Odoi joins Leverkusen on loan from Chelsea

Callum Hudson-Odoi

Mueez Ajao

– Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi has completed a loan move to Bayer Leverkusen for the rest of the season.

– The 21-year-old England forward has not played for Chelsea this campaign and made 15 Premier League appearances last season.

– Leverkusen were third in Germany’s Bundesliga in 2021-22 and are in this season’s Champions League group stages.

Also Read: BREAKING: Ross Barkley leaves Chelsea by mutual consent

– German champions Bayern Munich had a £35m bid for Hudson-Odoi turned down in 2019.

– He signed a five-year deal worth more than £120,000 a week with the Blues in September 2019, but has failed to earn a regular starting place since injuring his Achilles in the same year.

Callum Hudson-Odoi

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Real Madrid to hijack Atletico target Iker Bravo

Iker Bravo

Mueez Ajao

– Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are battling it out for the signing of Bayer Leverkusen starlet Iker Bravo.

– Atletico were the first to show an interest in the Spain Under-19 and Under-17 forward.

– Madrid monitored the 17-year-old’s progress last season and have decided to join the race for his signature.

Also Read: Atletico Madrid sign Udinese defender Nahuel Molina

– Sources have told that both clubs see Bravo as a prospect for the future and will not rush him, thus allowing him to go step-by-step and play for the reserves at first before joining up with the first team.

– Madrid are confident Bravo will choose them ahead of Atletico, although the player’s entourage appreciate the effort made by Atletico after the club increased their offer for the striker.

– Whatever the outcome, all parties expect the deal to be finalised in the coming days.

– A Barcelona youth product, Bravo joined Leverkusen as a free agent in July 2021.

– He became Leverkusen’s second-youngest debutant in the Bundesliga at 16 years and 298 days of age in a 1-1 draw with Hertha Berlin last year.

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Reus gives Dortmund first win of the season

Mueez Ajao

– Marco Reus’ first-half goal was enough as Borussia Dortmund started their Bundesliga campaign with a slender win over Bayer Leverkusen.

– The goal came after 10 minutes with Reus rushing in to scramble home on the goalline after Karim Adeyemi’s effort was saved by Lukas Hradecky’s legs.

– In added-on time Hradecky was sent off for handling outside his area after a lengthy VAR review.

Also Read: Dortmund confirm successful surgery for Haller; out for two months

– The win follows Bayern Munich’s 6-1 opening-game victory on Friday night.

– The game was Dortmund’s first since Erling Haaland joined Premier League champions Manchester City and they are currently without his replacement – former West Ham and Ajax striker Sebastien Haller – who is undergoing chemotherapy for a testicular tumour.

– Adeyemi was also replaced after 23 minutes with an injury but Dortmund, who finished second behind Bayern Munich last year, saw out the game to start the season positively.

Karim Adeyemi