ROLFES: ‘A WAKE-UP CALL’

Leverkusen – It was supposed to be Bayer 04 Leverkusen’s big night, but instead of celebrating a place in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League, a nightmarish5-0 defeat at home to Group A leaders Manchester United has left die Werkself’s qualification hopes hanging by a thread.Even victory over Real Sociedad de Futbol in next month’s group stage finale might not be enough for Sami Hyypia’s men, who find themselves in the uncomfortable position of having to rely on events elsewhere, as Bayer’s disconsolate captain Simon Rolfesexplained after Wednesday’s BayArena horror show…
Question: Simon Rolfes, Leverkusen lost 5-0 to Manchester United in their own stadium. How did that happen?
Simon Rolfes: There’s nothing positive to say about the defeat. That performance wasn’t on. We’ll analyse the game in peace tomorrow and try to learn from it. We have to do much better in the coming weeks.
Question: Can you explain why the game ended so disastrously?
Rolfes: We didn’t start too badly, but going 1-0 down rocked our confidence. Once we went 2-0 down we were no longer in it. They defended well in the centre of the park. They have a top-quality team and are also great going forward. We had no answer and started to make silly mistakes. We never threatened in the final third and when we lost the ball, they counterattacked us well. In the end, it was very one-sided.


ROLFES: ‘A WAKE-UP CALL’