Leverkusen edge Bremen in Bundesliga

Insight Online News

Berlin, Mar 13 : Bayer Leverkusen overpowered Werder Bremen 3-2 in the Bundesliga on Sunday.

Both sides staged a lively opening period but the spectators had to wait until the half-hour mark before Niclas Fullkrug set up for Marvin Ducksch, who opened the scoring for Bremen from a tight angle.

The Werkself had a golden chance to equalize three minutes later, but Mitchel Bakker missed the target from 15 meters.

The Dutchman cut a better figure in front of the target with the next action, drilling Jeremie Frimpong’s pass into the roof of the net.

Bremen assumed control again after the restart, but it was the visitors who took the lead in the 56th minute when Frimpong’s deflected long-range attempt left custodian Jiri Pavlenka with no chance.

The Green and Whites pushed forward, but Ducksch and Fullkrug could not beat Leverkusen goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky despite promising opportunities at the hour mark.

Leverkusen sealed the deal in the 83rd minute when Adam Hlozek headed home a deflected cross. Bremen kept going and were rewarded with a late consolation goal by Fullkrug.

“We are happy, we are satisfied with the result. It wasn’t our most spectacular performance, but we were effective,” said Leverkusen head coach Xabi Alonso.

“It was an evenly balanced encounter. There were enough opportunities to score more than two goals. However, in the end, the effectiveness in the penalty area made the difference today,” rued Werder Bremen coach Ole Werner.

Elsewhere, Union Berlin missed the chance to return into the top three after sharing the spoils with Wolfsburg in a 1-1 draw, and Freiburg edged Hoffenheim 2-1 courtesy of Ritsu Doan’s last-gasp winner.

UNIINDIA / XINHUA