Agency :
Bayer Leverkusen secured a 2-1 comeback victory over Hungarian outfit Ferencvaros while Fenerbahce held Eintracht Frankfurt to a 1-1 draw at the kick-off in UEFA Europa League’s group stage on Thursday.
The Hungarians caught a perfect start on the road and stunned the “Werkself” with only eight minutes gone after Tokmac Chol Nguen had a lot of green ahead before squaring the ball into the path of unmarked Ryan Mmaee, who tapped home the opener from very close range.
Leverkusen was shocked and couldn’t find an answer whereas the visitors continued to be dangerous as Henry Wingo tested goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky with an effort on target at the edge of the box in the 11th minute.
The hosts came to their first half-chance with 17 minutes played when Palacios unleashed a shot from a central position which got blocked by defender Eldar Civic for a corner.
Ferencvaros custodian Denes Dibusz had to step in eight minutes later though after Kerem Demirbay hammered a free kick on target.
As the match progressed, Leverkusen increased the pressure and sent another warning goalwards as Dibusz had to palm away Lucas Alario’s attempt at the half-hour mark.
The host’s efforts got rewarded as Jeremi Frimpong’s good build-up work allowed Palacios to drill the equalizer past Dibusz 37 minutes into the clash.
The visitors thought they had taken the lead again, but Balint Vecsei’s goal was disallowed due to a foregone handball in the 39th minute.
Leverkusen had also a goal ruled out in the dying minutes of the first half after Jonathan Tah committed a foul play before heading home.
After the restart, Leverkusen dictated the pace and came to chances as Amine Adli and Wirtz forced Dibusz into action twice.
Leverkusen’s defense looked fragile, but defender Delay Sinkgraven defused a counterattack via Mmaee, who would have been through in the 64th minute.
The “Werkself” eventually broke Ferencvaros’ resistance five minutes later when Wirtz benefitted from Frimpong’s assist to make it 2-1 on the scoreboards.
It could have been a higher victory for the home side but substitutes Patrik Schick and Nadiem Amiri squandered promising opportunities in the closing stages.
“It was a weak start for us, but we took our time getting a foothold into the game. We improved as the game clock ticked and deserved the win tonight,” Leverkusen midfielder Florian Wirtz said.
With the result, Betis (3 points) top Group G followed by Leverkusen (3 points), Celtic (0 points) and Ferencvaros (0 points).
Elsewhere, Eintracht Frankfurt started with a draw into Group D after new arrival Sam Lammer canceled out Mesut Ozil’s early opener for Fenerbahce. Olympiacos take the front spot in Group D followed by Fenerbahce (1 point), Frankfurt (1 point) and Antwerp (0 points).
