The season hasn’t started exactly as Schalke would’ve wanted, but a big 2-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday may kickstart their season in a positive light.
Schalke vs. Bayer Leverkusen: Final score 2-0, Royal Blues rebound with massive win
After a disastrous start to their season, Schalke picked up a big 2-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday.
Lars Baron
Kevin-Prince Boateng made his debut for Schalke in the match and caused matchup problems in the center of midfield from the start. Leverkusen's Stefan Reinartz and Lars Bender struggled to contain him from the start.
The first goal came in the 30th minute on a set piece. Ömer Toprak was whistled for an intentional handball and shown a yellow card. Jefferson Farfan’s free kick was flicked on by Marco Höger, and the ball beat Bernd Leno into the back of the net for the 1-0 lead.
Schalke came close to doubling their lead just before the halftime whistle. Boateng crossed the halfway line before feeding the ball wide left to Draxler. After dribbling into the box, the midfielder crossed into Szalai, but his shot was just wide of the target.
The second half featured more pressure from Schalke, with Leverkusen hoping for a goal during a counterattack. Boateng was once again in the middle of everything, and his fantastic header in the 65th minute brought a great save out of Leno.
Substitute Jermaine Jones played a ball out wide to a streaking Farfan, and Spahic brought down the Peruvian in the penalty area. Farfan converted the penalty to give Schalke some breathing room..
Perhaps this will finally kick off Schalke’s season? They now go into the international break before returning to face Mainz. Leverkusen will rue this opportunity to move atop the Bundesliga table, but they’ll get Wolfsburg when the Bundesliga returns.
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