Bayer Leverkusen continues to perform unsteadily in the Bundesliga. The team of trainer Peter Bosz seemed to be defeated against FC Augsburg with a minimal difference on Sunday, but in the last second of the five minutes extra time an equalizer fell: 1-1. A hard blow for the home team, which after twenty mutual duels in the Bundesliga has never been die Werkself has won. Bayer, which has won only one of the last five league matches, is now at least five points behind the top four.
A huge blunder after less than five minutes of play caused the class difference in the first half. Base debutant Niklas Lomb, who replaced the injured Lukas Hradecky under the crossbar at Bayer, wanted to put the ball in front of his left leg after a return ball from Leon Bailey and shoot it away, but instead the goalkeeper just tapped the ball away with his right foot. Florian Niederlechner, who had put good pressure, could easily work the ball into the empty goal: 1-0.
Niklas Lomb oder Niklas Lomp? Peter Bosz’s keeper makes a huge mistake!# fcab04 pic.twitter.com/byElnT0qvY
– ESPN NL (@ESPNnl) February 21, 2021
Bayer failed to get back into the game after falling early and didn’t put Augsburg goalkeeper Rafa Gikiewicz to work once in the remainder of the first half. The home team, with captain Jeffrey Gouweleeuw in the base, was good defensively and was also dangerous in the switch. Three minutes after the break, Bayer had a real view of a goal for the first time. Moussa Diaby attacked Augsburg’s goal after a good action, but Gikiewicz reacted well to his powerful effort.
However Bayer tried in the WWK Arena, defeat seemed unavoidable. After 54 minutes, Augsburg appeared to receive a penalty after a game between Timothy Fosu-Mensah and Niederlechner, but the VAR pointed out that Rubén Vargas was offside just before that. Jeremie Frimpong, who came in for Bailey after 58 minutes, claimed a penalty after a duel with Mads Pedersen, but no one wanted to.
Fifteen minutes before the end, Frimpong had the equalizer on his shoe. He took the ball with his chest and then shot the ball over Gikiewicz’s goal. The born Amsterdammer was the one who took Bayer, who even tried to force the 1-1 with high balls, until the last minute. In the end it was Edmond Tapsoba who made the 1-1 in the last second of extra time after preparatory work by Frimpong and Demarai Gray. Daley Sinkgraven sat on the couch for ninety minutes.