FC Schalke 04 suffered a setback in the Bundesliga relegation battle against Bayern conquerors Bayer Leverkusen and lost for the first time in the second half of the season. Coach Thomas Reis' team lost 3-0 (0-0) to their Western rivals for the outstanding Florian Wirtz.
Schalke, who had not lost eight times in a row, remain in the relegation zone. Leverkusen, on the other hand, confirmed their very good shape 13 days after the 2-1 win against FC Bayern Munich. Jeremie Frimpong (50th minute), Wirtz (61st) and Sardar Azmoun (90th 2) scored the goals for coach Xabi Alonso's team against a strong but offensively harmless Schalke team. With their fourth win in a row, Leverkusen continued their race to catch up in the European Cup in front of 62,271 spectators in the Gelsenkirchen Arena.
"We want to spoil the game," said Schalke coach Reis before the game, referring to the football class and the pace of Leverkusen. His team only implemented the plan well at the beginning. Schalke stayed close to their opponents, were aggressive in duels and won numerous balls. The newcomer celebrated euphorically won duels. Again and again the Royal Blues clapped and cheered each other on.
Wirtz plays strong
However, they were not able to take the Leverkusen noble technicians around national player Wirtz out of the game completely. The 19-year-old, whose early substitution in the international match against Belgium had been the subject of much discussion, put Amine Adli in the limelight with a great lob. Schalke was able to thank his goalkeeper Ralf Fährmann, who reacted strongly, for keeping the score 0-0. In a lively game, Michael Frey had the first chance for the hosts after a defensive mistake by Leverkusen. Jonathan Tah blocked the center forward's shot just in time.
It took Leverkusen a while to adjust to Schalke's fighting style of play. Guided by Alonso, who coached on the sidelines, Bayer 04 kept up the pace and gained the upper hand. Adli had the 1-0 on the foot, but failed again free-standing by Fährmann (27th).
Shortly after the change of sides, the goalkeeper was powerless. After Fährmann had made a strong save against the goal scorer seconds earlier, Frimpong only had to push the ball over the line on his own after preparatory work from Moussa Diaby.
And Leverkusen continued: After a remarkable one-two with Adli, Wirtz prevailed in the penalty area and made it 2-0. It was the first goal of the season in the league for the long-injured playmaker. Schalke didn't have the means in attack to seriously endanger Bayer 04 again. Substitute Azmoun even scored the third goal for Leverkusen in added time.
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