Two goals from Karim Bellarabi and a sensational third from Hakan Calhanoglu was enough to see the German side make their way through to the Round of 16
Bayer Leverkusen sealed their place in the last 16 of the Europa League with a 3-1 win over Sporting at BayArena on Thursday, sealing a 4-1 aggregate victory.
Karim Bellarabi broke the deadlock midway through the first half, as he smashed an effort from close range past helpless goalkeeper Rui Patricio after being fed through on goal by Javier Hernandez.
Sporting had a good opportunity to achieve a foothold in the tie moments later but Carlos Mane fluffed his lines and stumbled over the ball inside the area to let the chance go begging.
Seconds later however they were level, Bernd Leno could only parry Mane’s shot to the feet of Joao Mario, who slotted in from close range to level up the match.
But Bellarabi sealed Bayer’s progression with a piece of fine individual skill in the second period, cutting inside from the left flank before crashing in a powerful drive that flew into the net.
With less than five minutes remaining on the clock Hakan Calhanoglu put the game beyond any doubt as he struck a wonderful third for the hosts.
More to follow…
- Goal