There is an inevitability to Bayer Leverkusen’s late shows. On a night of dogged, selfless defending, Xabi Alonso’s side maintained their composure, used their bench and took control of this Europa League tie with two goals in the dying stages.
All the statistics favoured the Bundesliga’s champions-elect, the shot count embarrassing, the possession absurd. West Ham fought, David Moyes’s stifling tactics giving them a chance, but the final score was realistic on the balance of play.
Not for nothing is Alonso, whose side can win the league on Sunday, management’s rising star. The goals came from two of his substitutes, Jonas Hofmann and Victor Boniface, and extended Leverkusen’s unbeaten run stands at 42 matches. West Ham, who will be without Lucas Paquetá at the London Stadium next week, have a mountain to climb.
There had to be a tactical rejig from Moyes, the absence of Edson Álvarez in midfield and Jarrod Bowen in attack highlighting a lack of depth, a switch to a 3-4-2-1 system the wisest solution. Even then, though, it was hard to see West Ham surviving if the plan was a night of all-out sufferball.
Maintaining a threat on the break was vital and there was early encouragement for West Ham as Michail Antonio surged beyond Jonathan Tah, Leverkusen’s high line pierced, only for Mohammed Kudus to shoot weakly at Matej Kovar.
But that was an isolated foray from the visitors. Sixteen minutes in, the home fans howled as Lukasz Fabianski took an age over a free-kick. Leverkusen’s way under Alonso is to smother opponents, denying them possession, and they had already managed five shots on goal by that stage. Fabianski needed to be good to repel efforts from Alejandro Grimaldo and Amine Adli.
The action flew in one direction, Granit Xhaka controlling midfield, Florian Wirtz and Adli mischievous in the pockets. Starved of the ball, with Bowen’s speed on the right a huge miss, West Ham grew frustrated.
Their wing-backs were not in the game and Paquetá, desperate to display his creativity, lashed out after over-elaborating. The Brazilian swiped at Adli, earning a booking that rules him out of the second leg.
Alonso told Leverkusen, who sit 16 points above Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga, to stay calm. They continued to probe and Patrik Schick’s angled drive tested Fabianski, although there was a different feel as half-time approached. West Ham’s containing job was working, the defending uncompromising, while Leverkusen were not entirely convincing at the back.
Antonio’s strength certainly had Tah worried. The defender was fortunate not to concede a penalty for grabbing the striker’s shirt. Moyes, who had just seen Antonio fail to find Paquetá after barrelling past Xhaka and Edmond Tapsoba, was incensed.
Alonso’s concern had to be Leverkusen’s hunt for a way through West Ham’s low block. The final ball had to be better. Wirtz wriggled down the right at the start of the second half, only for Tomas Soucek, who was slogging away in midfield, to block his cutback to Schick.
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Space was limited, Leverkusen’s early spark in danger of fizzling out. The crowd chuntered, urging more bodies to get in the box, especially as they could see that there was a stodginess to West Ham’s attempts to build. Uncomfortable when the pressing from Leverkusen intensified, the visitors were finding it difficult to hold on to the ball. Kudus had few opportunities to showcase his skill.
With 65 minutes gone Paquetá came alive, turning beautifully in midfield, only for his head to drop when Antonio messed up the return pass. An away goal looked unlikely. But a Leverkusen one was not exactly an inevitability. James Ward-Prowse tracked back to block a cross. Vladimir Coufal battled hard on the right. Konstantinos Mavropanos and Kurt Zouma grappled with Schick.
Challenged to be more direct, Leverkusen went down the flanks, Schick’s header stretching Fabianski. The minutes ticking away, Alonso brought on Boniface and Hofmann.
Boniface caused problems. Latching on to a header from a corner, the striker’s shot was blocked by Zouma. The ball dropped to Hofmann, whose hooked shot squirmed through the bodies and past Fabianski. Leverkusen always find a way.
The tension then lifted, they pushed for a second. Boniface would extend the lead with a glancing header in added time.