Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid failed to confirm their place in the Champions League knockout phase after losing to Bayer Leverkusen, who keep their slim hopes of going through alive.
This was a chance for Die Werkself to pick up their first points of the campaign, and they took it with open arms thanks to a Thomas Partey own goal and a second from Kevin Volland before Alvaro Morata scored a late consolation.
It was always going to be a tough task for Peter Bosz and his side, drawn in a group with Atleti and Juventus. But they are still in it…just.
The evening’s earlier Champions League 2019 updates revealed that a 93rd-minute winner by Douglas Costa gave I Bianconeri a 1-2 victory over Locomotiv. As a result, Juve go three points clear at the top of Group D while Leverkusen draw level with Locomotiv.
Highlights of the game
It was all Bayer in the opening exchanges, as the hosts registered five shots within 15 minutes, but none troubled Jan Oblak in the Atleti goal. And the visitors finally had a shot in anger on 20 minutes, but Santiago Arias’s speculative effort sailed over the bar.
Leverkusen’s top scorer, Kevin Volland, did force Oblak into action on 21 minutes but the Slovenian gathered comfortably.
That was the only effort he was called on to save in the opening 45 minutes, but Los Rojiblancos still went into the half-time break behind as the luckless Partey turned a corner into his own net.
It was a gift for Bayer, but with a chance to get their first points on the board and keep their qualification hopes alive, the German crowd didn’t care one bit!
Diego Simeone started with Alvaro Morata and Diego Costa up front. Morata was on target for Los Rojiblancos as they earned a 1-1 draw away to Sevilla at the weekend, while Costa missed a penalty and had a goal ruled out by VAR in that game. But at the BayArena, they didn’t have a sniff until it was too late.
And when Bayer doubled their lead early in the second half, there was little, if any, prospect of the visitors taking anything from the game. Skipper Volland was cool as a cucumber when the ball was swung in from the right as he slotted it low into the bottom right corner to send the Leverkusen crowd wild.
Going two down did spark something in Los Rojiblancos as Thomas Lemar fired a shot low towards the bottom right corner. But Lukas Hradecky was alert to the danger and saved well.
Kai Havertz came close to scoring on 77 minutes when he got on the end of a Kerem Demirbay cross, but his header was blocked by a desperate Atleti defence.
Havertz had a quiet night by his standards but he’s a real prospect. The young forward has been linked with a move to Real Madrid and Barcelona, and now Manchester United are reported to be considering an £80m swoop for him.
Moments later, he was inches away from scoring when he met a corner from Demirbay, but his header flew inches over the top right corner.
Tempers frayed when Bayer had a corner on 79 minutes and in the ensuing melee, Atleti’s Oblak and Morata were joined in the referee’s book by Bayer’s Bellarabi and Jonathan Tah. And then Bayer’s perfect evening was tarnished when Nadiem Amiri hacked down Arias on the right wing and was red-carded.
It very briefly looked like turning into a disaster when Morata slotted home a 94th-minute consolation, and then had another chance a minute later, but Hradecky stood firm to stop the threat.
What’s next?
Atleti must now wait for another chance to progress, but in the meantime, it’s back to domestic matters. They sit fourth in the La Liga table, but just a single point behind leaders Barcelona. A home fixture against 19th placed Espanyol presents an ideal chance for Simeone’s side to keep up the pace in the race for the title.
Keep an eye out for all the latest news, updates and SBOBET tips for all the top European leagues as we head towards another weekend of great action.
A home defeat to leaders Borussia Monchengladbach last weekend left Die Werkself down in 10th place in the Bundesliga table, and they next have a difficult trip to face eighth-placed VfL Wolfsburg. But a win will allow them to leapfrog their hosts and climb back into contention. In a very congested top half of the table, Leverkusen are only three points behind third-placed RB Leipzig.
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