CHAMPIONS LEAGUE PLAYER RATINGS | Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 AC Milan

In the second game of the Champions League, Bayer Leverkusen had to work towards victory against AC Milan at the BayArena.

Leverkusen were the better team in the first half and really kept Milan in their own half, but were never able to take full advantage of that dominance. A goal from Victor Boniface was disallowed for offside, but Mike Maignan stayed strong and managed to withstand Leverkusen’s efforts.

The second half started similarly to the first, with Leverkusen having most of the ball. The breakthrough came when Jeremie Frimpong, after a nice move by Leverkusen, directed the shot into the path of Boniface and made it 1-0. This goal opened the game and Milan were finally able to enjoy a period of dominance. Opportunities for Tijani Reijnders and Youssoufa Fofana were forced by Lukas Hradecky.

Milan continued to have the better chances as Theo Hernandez hit the crossbar and Alvaro Morata’s rebound narrowly missed the goal. Ruben Loftus-Cheek would force Hradecky into a save again. However, Leverkusen would ride the storm and win 1-0.

The discussion surrounding Leverkusen at the start of the season revolved around their defensive problems, but after their 1-1 draw against Bayern Munich at the weekend and their performance this evening, it has become clear that these issues have been worked on. Leverkusen probably could have had a bigger lead if Frimpong had been more precise with his shots, but the Werkself were able to fend off Milan’s attacks with the help of Hradecky’s saves.

Leverkusen’s next game in the Champions League is in Brittany against Brest.

Bayer Leverkusen XI:

Luke Hradecky (8)Edmond Tapsoba (6)Jonathan Tah (6)Piero Hincapie (5)Jeremie Frimpong (6)Granit Xhaka (6)Alex García (6)Alejandro Grimaldo (6)Florian Wirtz (6)Amine Adli (6)Victor Boniface (7)

Others: Martin Terrier (5), Robert Andrich (6), Exequiel Palacios (5), Jeanuël Belocian (-), Nathan Tella (-)

GGFN man of the match: Lukas Hradecky (8)

In terms of attack, Leverkusen’s star player was Victor Boniface, the Nigerian has continued his impressive form and was a handful for the Milan defense away from goal before his move on. However, Hradecky secured the victory.

The Finn made several impressive key saves from Loftus-Cheek, Reijnders and Fofana to keep Milan away and without him the visitors could have easily equalized or even won the game with their dominance in the second half.

GGFN | Jack Meenan