Leverkusen acted harmlessly near the penalty area for a long time – and yet took the lead. After a quick goal kick from Flekken, Leipzig’s defense was disorganized. Tella appeared free in front of RB goalkeeper Maarten Vandevoort and passed it across to Schick, who deliberately pushed the ball into the far corner.
Six minutes later the Czech could have extended the lead, but Leipzig’s El-Chadaille Bitshiabu prevented a secure 2-0 with a strong save. But that was only postponed: Shortly before the break, Tella injected a cross from Aleix GarcĂa and finished with a direct pass.
The first chance after the change also belonged to the hosts. Schick again finished in the penalty area, but Vandevoordt was there. Leipzig struggled, but couldn’t find a gap in Bayer’s compact defense. In fact, Schick finally put the lid on Bayer with his second goal a quarter of an hour before the end. Baumgartner’s interim connection couldn’t prevent the defeat (80′). And Schick even followed up again. It was the 30-year-old’s 15th goal of the season, whom Hjulmand had praised before kick-off: “He’s a great finisher.”
