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Leverkusen 2 - 1 Beşiktaş

UEFA CUP: Leverkusen dash Beşiktaş hopes

/noticias.info/ Bayer 04 Leverkusen stormed into the knockout stages of the UEFA Cup on Thursday night following a hard-fought victory at home against Beşiktaş JK.

Scant consolation
Bernd Schneider opened the scoring for the hosts late on to kick-start a busy 12-minute spell that saw another two goals fly in before the final whistle. Sergej Barbarez doubled the advantage before Ricardinho's injury-time penalty brought scant consolation for Beşiktaş, who crash out of Europe after finishing fourth in Group B, one place below Leverkusen.

Early chances
With Beşiktaş needing only a draw to progress to the knockout phase, it was inevitable that the Turkish side would be content to sit back and soak up pressure in the early exchanges. That proved to be the case as first Athirson and then Barbarez went close for Leverkusen inside the first three minutes.

Voronin effort
When Athirson carved out another opening, his shot was comfortably dealt with by Beşiktaş keeper Vedran Runje. Moments later Andriy Voronin took aim from the edge of the penalty area but succeeded only in rattling the stand behind the Beşiktaş goal with a wayward attempt. Marko Babić had the Bundesliga team's final chance of the half ten minutes from the break, his strike stinging the palms of the busy Runje.

Rebound converted
The second period was a lively affair that simmered and bubbled with plenty of opportunities for both clubs. The breakthrough eventually came in the 78th minute after Beşiktaş defender Baki Mercimek was adjudged to have handled inside the box. Although Babić's penalty was saved by Runje, Schneider was alive to the follow-up and slammed the ball in from close range.

Too late
Eight minutes later it was two and all over for the visitors, Barbarez slotting home after substitute Stefan Kiessling had seen an effort blocked. With the clock ticking down, Tranquillo Barnetta pulled Ali Tandoğan down in the area to give Beşiktaş a late lifeline. Ricardinho made no mistake with an emphatic finish, but it was not enough for Beşiktaş to salvage their European campaign. notas_de_prensa_archivo