In an encounter full of emotions, Hoffenheim soured Erik ten Hag’s debut as coach of Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, coming from behind to beat his team 2-1 in Leverkusen on Saturday.
Tim Lemperle scored the winning goal for the visitors at the start of the second half, leaving a bitter taste at the start of Leverkusen’s new era, after a summer of changes.
Ten Hag, who took over after Xabi Alonso’s move to Real Madrid, included three new signings in his starting lineup, including goalkeeper Mark Flekken, young forward Ibrahim Maza, and defender Jarell Quansah.
Quansah put Leverkusen ahead on the scoreboard, but Fisnik Asllani tied the match in the 25th minute and assisted Lemperle in the 52nd minute.Erik ten Hag reacts during his first Bundesliga match in charge of Bayer Leverkusen. (Rene Nijhuis/MB Media/Getty Images)The summer departures of key Leverkusen players such as Florian Wirtz, Granit Xhaka, Jeremie Frimpong, and former captain Jonathan Tah were evident, as the home team failed to react.
Ten Hag, who was fired by Manchester United last season, was just one of four coaches who debuted in the Bundesliga with new teams this weekend.
Former Germany assistant Sandro Wagner had a dream start with his team, Augsburg, winning 3-1 in Freiburg, while Paul Simonis also secured a victory in his debut with Wolfsburg, who beat Heidenheim 3-1 away from home.
Horst Steffen’s Werder Bremen lost 4-1 to Eintracht Frankfurt, whose goalkeeper, Michael Zetterer, debuted against his former teammates three days after changing teams.
