Europa LeagueBayer Leverkusen 2-0 West Ham United
Thursday, 11th April 2024
by Chris Wilkerson
It was always going to be tough, and so it proved as West Ham fell to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Xabi Alondo's Bayer Leverkusen in the first leg of this Europa League quarter-final.
On a wonderful Thursday night at the BayArena in Leverkusen, David Moyes's West Ham team scrapped for every second of every minute, but two late goals were enough to put the German side in full control of the tie as the claret and blue resistance was broken by substitutes Hofmann and Boniface.Without Alvarez and Bowen, a daunting task was only made harder. Whilst some may fault the style of the manager, what cannot be questioned is the application of the players, who fought the whole way, giving 100% in every moment and playing selflessly for their team throughout.
West Ham had drawn arguably the hardest competitor going in Europe right now. Not only are Bayer Leverkusen unbeaten this season, now winning 37 and with 5 draws, but they're also sitting so far ahead in the league that they need only two points from their remaining five games to finally dethrone the giants Bayern Munich.
With that in mind, Alonso made changes to his side at the weekend, still winning, as he was able to keep his team fresh for this tie. In contrast, West Ham remain fighting for another season of European football and cannot afford to let their focus drop on any front.
With Bowen unable to shake off the injury he picked up in the win against Wolves at the weekend, and Phillips injured and unable to fill Alvarez's place, Moyes changed his system. Cresswell came in, and a strong 5-4-1 (call it 3-4-3 all you want, it wasn't that) lined up to limit the space in the West Ham half and give a defensive base for his side. The manager said before the game that he wanted his team to be tactically flexible, but they barely had the chance as their hosts pinned them back in their own half for 95% of the game.
That pattern started straight from the off and never let up. The Hammers were at backs-to-the-wall defending immediately. Coufal took a smash to the back of the head after two minutes making a great saving header at the far post after a deep cross, and that was the fight his team was going to need.
The Leverkusen side attacked in numbers throughout. The first choice came to their right back, Stanisic, as a little space opened up on the edge of the box after slow and patient passing in front of a packed defence. The shot was dragged, but Schick reacted quickly to flick the ball at goal, diverting it in almost the opposite direction. Thankfully for West Ham, it rolled right to the hands of Fabianski.
Minutes later, West Ham had their one and only chance of the game, their only shot, as they made the most of a counter.
It started in the middle as Ward-Prowse and Paqueta combined in the middle and played forward to Antonio. The striker was smart, pulling wide to the left and forcing Tah to follow him.
He took the ball in and then suddenly knocked it far ahead of both he and Tah into the Bayer half. He had the beating of the defender in a foot race, easily, and drove towards the penalty area. Looking up, Antonio smartly squared to Kudus.
The Ghanaian had space as the ball rolled to his feet and chose to hit first time. Unfortunately, the strike was straight at the goalkeeper Kovar, rushed and wasted. He could have taken a touch, rounded the last defender scrambling across to him, and really it just needed to be in a corner. It wasn't.
It was a rare moment for the travelling Irons to cheer.
The hosts responded immediately, Adli curling a good effort from the corner of the box that Fabianski powered away on the stretch. 32 shots had been fired at his goal by the end of play, although 10 were blocked.
Fabianski showed himself to be more than worthy of game time, a consistent goalkeeper who doesn't look to have slowed down from last season as number one choice. He had to be, Leverkusen were ready to test him from different angles and with regularity. Grimaldo soon had the Pole at full stretch from 25 yards as he smashed a stinger at goal.
The Hammers were struggling to get into the game themselves, and never did. They couldn't add the counter threat to their defensive solidity. Maybe with Bowen there, the pace of Kudus and Bowen could have got up and around Antonio in those moments, but it was down to Kudus alone, and he couldn't make it happen.
As they struggled, Paqueta lost his head and found himself quickly booked. Having not won a foul he felt he earned, the Brazilian took out his frustration on the Bayer player in possession, just fully kicking his leg in a rage. He may have been lucky to escape with only the booking, but will still be suspended for the second leg.
A bit of physicality may have worked 30 years ago, but with players protected more than they used to be. The chances flowed forth.
On the half-hour mark, Schick found space in the box, a rarity in a packed area, and his low shot across goal would have nestled in the far corner if the goalkeeper hadn't got down quickly to tip it wide. Moments later, it was the centre back Tapsoba hitting low from range into the corner, only again for Fabianski to make the save.
With just under 10 minutes to go in the first half, the last moment to cheer for the West Ham fans was not even a chance, but just the fight of Michail Antonio. Battling alone with three defenders around him, he managed to beat all three, one at a time, whether with physicality and muscle, or subtle touch and pace. Unfortunately, having done the hard part, he could not find Paqueta with his pass.
Another Tapsoba effort, this one scuffed when in some space in the box, was how the half ended, and West Ham managed to survive until the break with their clean sheet intact. 0-0, but with 17 shots to West Ham's one. All that said, the best and only clear chance had fallen to Kudus.
You could only assume the second half would follow the same pattern. West Ham may have shown on many occasions under Moyes that they can turn a bad half into something completely different after a break, but this was complete control that the home side had.
Emerson was booked about 15 minutes into the second half, meaning he will also be suspended for the return leg at the London Stadium. It was an incident of note in a second half that started much more slowly, and West Ham had 20 minutes of defending, but defending without any major threat.
But it was continued pressure. Getting out of their own half became an achievement. Alonso turned to his bench after around 25 minutes to spark something more from his team. Off went Stanisic and Frimpong, on came Hincapie and former Southampton player Nathan Tella.
Soon the goal was threatened with growing regularity. The home side had stayed patient, keeping the pressure on and hoping to see West Ham crack as time went on.
Schick soon forced a fantastic reaction save from Fabianski after Grimaldo dug out a cross just before the ball crossed the byline. Schick rose quickly at the near post, turning it at goal almost entirely out of instinct, but the goalkeeper was equal to it.
Boniface and Hofmann were thrown on, the former the Leverkusen top scorer, coming back off four months injured. This was the telling change.
They almost had an instant impact. Boniface did well to drop into space in midfield as West Ham had attempted a rare attack. Hofmann drove in off the wing, Boniface turned and drilled a ball through the defence. It looked like the German winger would get to it just on the edge of the box, but Fabianski was off his line and slid out to dispossess the forward.
Five minutes later, the deadlock was finally broken. A corner curled into the box to the far post was met by Tah, the defender beating Coufal with ease to head back into the middle. Zouma threw his body out and blocked the shot that followed. It was a fantastic block, but the ball looped out towards the edge.
It dropped down inside the box and was volleyed back at goal fantastically by Hoffman. Running slightly away from goal, the German hit before it bounced on his left foot. It flew through all the bodies in the box and squeezed past them all to beat Fabianski, the goalkeeper completely unable to see the ball before it was on him, and although just out of his reach, it was so painfully close to him. Had he had any chance of sighting the shot, he would have had time to react.
Moyes threw Johnson and Aguerd on for Kudus and Mavropanos in a hope of holding on.
And that was now desperate. With a minute to go, Soucek was a hero with two blocks on the line. A freekick from the left made it through to Tah at the back post. His shot was blocked bravely and brilliantly by Aguerd, but fell into the middle. It was fired back at goal, but Soucek blocked just in front of the goalline with Fabianski beaten. But it flew back to Tah again, and he hit a quick shot at goal.
Fabianski was beaten once more, but he wasn't the man to beat, it was Soucek, who blocked again just in front of the line. This time it cleared.
But those heroics were soon forgotten.
It was another corner, and this one wasn't unlucky, just slack. A short ball was then curled from the left and to the far post. Boniface was in enough space to rise freely and head down into the bottom corner from six yards out. It was simple, but the blow really changed the tie. A one-goal deficit felt like an acceptable outcome, it still felt like a game was on. 2-0 completely changed the perspective.
Not only do West Ham need to beat the unbeaten, soon-to-be Bundesliga champions, but they need to beat them by two clear goals just to force extra time. Mountains have been climbed before, but this feels a step too far.
Manager's Rating
David Moyes 7/10: Nobody wants to be a brave loser, they'd rather be a lucky winner. His side earned more than what they got by working hard, showing immense discipline, and fighting hard. It's a shame he couldn't find more in an attacking sense, but the opponents were also that good.
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Click to view all West Ham United vs Bayer Leverkusen match reports Click to view all match reports by Chris Wilkerson Like to share your thoughts on this article? Please visit the KUMB Forum to leave a comment.Player Ratings
Lukasz FabianskiBarely a thing to do, but did it all well.
Vladimir Coufal
Never in bother in defence, but a good asset in attack. Looks more comfortable with Bowen ahead of him, and his direct passing was key to getting attacks moving quickly.
Aaron Cresswell
He's not a consistent player and his lack of pace now means he can't be a starting option often, but he was very good today. Sharp passing, excellent delivery from corners and a very well taken goal.
Kurt Zouma
Easy game for Kurt. Managed it well, barely tested.
Konstantinos Mavropanos
Whilst he can be rash, his physicality definitely makes attackers uncomfortable, and he can bully players.
Edson Alvarez
Comfortable in midfield and taking the ball from defence, as well as dropping in to help the shape widen, but a stupid challenge earned a yellow and a suspension.
Tomas Soucek
Dominant in midfield, great header on for the first goal, and he was brilliant in the air throughout. Has improved his form since Phillips arrived to put pressure on his place, and allow him the odd rest.
Lucas Paqueta
Excellent anticipation for the goal and a controlled performance in the middle.
Mohamed Kudus
He was excellent in his defensive work before the goals, and then just turned it on. It was like watching a player suddenly realise he was against a team of kids as he blazed past a line of Freiburg defenders.
Jarrod Bowen
An absolute driving force down the right, relentless in his hard work and how he tested the defence. Wonderfully taken goal, involved in two others.
Michail Antonio
He tired, and that's all that cost him a 10/10. It was a masterclass performance as a Moyes lone striker. Excellent work chasing and harrying, physical hold up, awareness of runners around him. Prime Antonio was back for a half. Man of the match.
Substitutes
James Ward-Prowse(Replaced Paqueta, 62) Did his job, keeping the workrate up and getting up and down. The change ensured we stayed on it, pushing for more, which really ended the tie.
Ben Johnson
(Replaced Antonio, 78) Looked to be enjoying it, and made some good forward runs with the ball.
Kalvin Phillips
(Replaced Alvarez, 86) Introduced to see out time.
Danny Ings
(Replaced Kudus, 86) Introduced to see out time.
George Earthy
(Replaced Bowen, 86) Introduced to see out time.
Alphonse Areola
Did not play.
Angelo Ogbonna
Did not play.
Nayef Aguerd
Did not play. Other unused subs: Kaelen Casey, Lewis Orford
Divin Mubama
Did not play. Other unused subs: Kaelen Casey, Lewis Orford
Match Facts
West Ham United: Lukasz Fabianski, Vladimir Coufal, Aaron Cresswell, Kurt Zouma, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Edson Alvarez, Tomas Soucek, Lucas Paqueta, Mohamed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen, Michail Antonio.Goals: Lucas Paqueta 9 Jarrod Bowen 32 Aaron Cresswell 52 Mohammed Kudus 77 Mohammed Kudus 85 .
Booked: Aaron Cresswell 0 Edson ALvarez 0 .
Sent off: None.
Bayer Leverkusen: .
Subs not used: .
Goals: .
Booked: .
Sent off: None.
Referee: .
Attendance: 0.
Man of the Match: Mohammed Kudus.