Bayer 04 Leverkusen tasted victory in the Bundesliga for the first time in four matches as the home side claimed an impressive 1-0 victory against Mainz 05.
A fantastic solo effort from new signing Javier Hernandez was enough to secure all three points for Roger Schmidt and his Leverkusen team.
We could get used to this! ?? #stärkebayer #bayer04 pic.twitter.com/K0v9jy3i4G
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04fussball) September 23, 2015
Plenty of chances for Leverkusen, but more should have been converted
It was a very impressive performance from the home side against Mainz, especially when compared to its last three league matches. However, this effort could have been more clinical.
The BayArena outfit had its first sniff at the away side’s goal in the third minute after a great run by Hernandez. Hakan Calhanoglu had a few chances in the first half, one of them being an ambitious free kick from 40 yards out. Although he has scored them from that distance before, this one travelled wildly off target.
At the halfway mark of the first term, Bayer left-back Wendell hammered a volleyed attempt towards goal and it was not far off.
Wing wizard Karim Bellarabi was the standout performer in the first half. The 25-year-old ventured on some exciting solo runs, even having a couple of attempts at goal before the break.
Leverkusen failed to take advantage of their large corner count, racking up 11 corners in the match, eight more than their opponents.
After Hernandez fired the home side into the lead in the 69th minute, he was immediately substituted for 31-year-old Stefan Kiessling.
Kiessling did not waste any time and was a part of the action just five minutes after the opener. The German struck the post from about four yards out, but it should have been 2-0. Kiessling had another glorious opportunity to seal the game but he missed a header at the near post, heading wide of the target which is unlike him.
Defensive midfielder Christoph Kramer thumped the ball into the far post in the 89th minute.
Leverkusen controlled the majority of the match with 67% possession and 14 shots to the away team’s five. Less than 50% of the home side’s attempts were on target.
Leverkusen may have got the win, but it would have been rather comfortable if they were able to score a second to put the game to bed. Roger Schmidt’s men could have had at least a few.
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