Defensive errors proved costly, as 10-man Lazio lost 3-0 at Bayer Leverkusen to crash out of the Champions League play-off.
The 1-0 first leg victory was overturned in Germany and the Aquile will compete in the Europa League instead this season. It means the eight-year wait for the Champions League gets longer.
Stefan Radu returned from suspension and tactics moved to a 3-4-3, as Miroslav Klose, Filip Djordjevic, Lucas Biglia and Federico Marchetti were injured. Bayer dropped Son Heung-Min ahead of his move to Tottenham.
Defensive errors proved costly, as 10-man Lazio lost 3-0 at Bayer Leverkusen to crash out of the Champions League play-off.
The 1-0 first leg victory was overturned in Germany and the Aquile will compete in the Europa League instead this season. It means the eight-year wait for the Champions League gets longer.
Stefan Radu returned from suspension and tactics moved to a 3-4-3, as Miroslav Klose, Filip Djordjevic, Lucas Biglia and Federico Marchetti were injured. Bayer dropped Son Heung-Min ahead of his move to Tottenham.
Keita pounced on a Jonathan Tah error and Berndt Leno had to sprint off his line to block the shot. Hakan Calhanoglu unleashed a screamer that skimmed the bar. Moments later, Dusan Basta’s effort on the volley landed on the roof of the net, but Etrit Berisha had his gloves stung by another Calhanoglu strike from distance.
Stefan Kiessling thought he’d scored after 25 minutes, but his header from a Calhanoglu cross smacked against the woodwork where the far post meets the crossbar.
Sokratis Papadopoulos turned a diving header wide from a corner, but Keita forced Leno to parry at the near post and more importantly had strong penalty appeals rejected. Tah was hanging off his shirt and shorts, but the 20-year-old tried to stay on his feet rather than go down.
Bayer Leverkusen did break through with their star man Calhanoglu, but the chaotic defending was mostly to blame. A simple ball in was not dealt with by Stefan de Vrij and Onazi’s poor clearance was blasted in on the rebound by an unmarked Calhanoglu from 12 yards.
More defensive errors were costly straight after the restart, as Mauricio was surprised by a Bellarabi through ball and Admir Mehmedi blasted under the bar from a tight angle.
Another poor clearance from Basta gave the ball to Lars Bender, his fierce effort punched out from under the bar, while Bellarabi’s deflected finish skimmed the back stick.
Things went from bad to worse for Lazio, as Mauricio received a second yellow card for a clumsy challenge on Kiessling.
Nonetheless, they were in the running to the last minute and a desperate tackle stopped Keita from shooting on the very edge of the box.
However, just as Lazio were pushing the hardest, the offside trap failed and Julian Brandt generously squared the ball for Bellarabi to fire into an empty net.
Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 Lazio (3-1 agg)
Scorers: Calhanoglu 40 (B), Mehmedi 48 (B), Bellarabi 88 (B)
Bayer Leverkusen: Leno; Hilbert, Papadopoulos, Tah, Wendell; Kramer, Bender; Bellarabi (Andre Ramalho 89), Calhanoglu (Kruse 80), Mehmedi (Brandt 76); Kiessling
Lazio: Berisha; Mauricio, De Vrij, Radu (Kishna 56); Basta, Onazi (Morrison 82), Parolo, Lulic; Candreva, Keita, Felipe Anderson (Gentiletti 70)
Ref: Caballo (ESP)
Sent off: Mauricio 68 (L)