BERLIN (AP) — Erik ten Hag made a winning start as Bayer Leverkusen coach with a 4-0 result at fourth-tier team Sonnenhof Großaspach in the first round of the German Cup on Friday.
Patrik Schick, Brazilian wing back Arthur, debutant Christian Kofane and Álex Grimaldo all scored, but they assumed control only after Großaspach captain Volkan Celikwas was sent off in the 66th with two bookings in as many minutes.
Leverkusen was forced to defend for long periods after Schick’s 32nd-minute opener. The Czech forward also needed to clear the ball off the line.
Arthur scored the second shortly after Celikwas’ sending off and the other goals followed Mert Tasdelen’s late sending off for a bad challenge on Leverkusen defender Axel Tape.
Ten Hag, the former Manchester United manager, took over from the Real Madrid-bound Xabi Alonso and has had little time to work with a squad undergoing huge changes. Key players like Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong and Granit Xhaka have left while Kofane, Tape, Ernest Poku, Ibrahim Maza, Jarell Quansah and goalkeeper Mark Flekken all made their debuts on Friday.
“Of course it needs time, you could see not every action worked out,” Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said of the changes. “But we saw today that we've got interesting young players. Ibrahim Maza did well and showed his qualities between the lines. And that's why it will take a little time, but we still have a good team.”
The match was interrupted in the first half by a summer storm featuring hailstones. Referee Michael Bacher led the teams off the field. It resumed after a 40-minute break.
Bielefeld does it again
American forward Isaiah Young struck in the final minutes to fire last season’s beaten finalist Arminia Bielefeld into the second round with a 1-0 win over Werder Bremen.
The Bundesliga side's Leonardo Bittencourt was sent off in the 54th and Bielefeld pushed hard for the winner. Young made his entrance in the 79th and sent the home fans wild when he tucked the ball inside the left post in the third minute of stoppage time.
Bielefeld, then playing in the third division, knocked out a host of Bundesliga clubs — including Bremen — on its way to the final in May, when Stuttgart proved too strong.
Stuttgart’s title defense won’t start till later this month as it’s playing Bayern Munich in the German Supercup on Saturday.
Also on Friday, Union Berlin routed fourth-tier side Gütersloh 5-0 away, and second-division Magdeburg enjoyed a 3-1 win at third-division Saarbrücken.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Ciarán Fahey, The Associated Press
