Super Eagles winger Nathan Tella has disclosed that Bayer Leverkusen’s inability to convert their goal-scoring opportunities against Bayern Munich cost the team the chance to make the German Cup final.
Recall that Leverkusen lost 2-0 to the Bavarians on Wednesday, thanks to goals from Harry Kane and Luiz Diaz at the BayArena.
Reflecting on the outcome of the game, the Nigerian international, in a chat with Kicker, faulted Bayer Leverkusen’s slow start to the game against Bayern Munich.
“We know we played against maybe the best team in the world,” Tella revealed post-match.
“As a team, we had the opportunity to get into the final, we wanted to do that and I think the first half we were a bit slow. But, the second half I thought we had better performances and created more chances and ultimately it wasn’t enough today.
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“We knew that they were going to have a lot of possession. We wanted to try and regain the ball higher as much as we can. I think it was a bit difficult because of their rotation in the middle and their movement because they are a very good team.
“And even if we won the ball, we knew their counter-press was really good. As a team, we knew what to expect but it is different when you are doing it in a meeting and playing a game.
“I think there is no one in the team who would say anything different, we had the opportunity to get to the final and it was disappointing that we were not able to do it, but we still have games in the league to push as high as possible as we can and that’s where the focus now, with recovery tomorrow and we look forward to Saturday,” the Super Eagles star added.
“Of course, it is still our goal. We want to play in the best competition in the world and play against the best teams in the world. Now it is down to us, we have to win these games and we have got the perfect opportunity on Saturday.
“I think as a team we can still be confident, the second half we grew into the game and created more chances and of course still disappointed to concede the first goal right at the end, but I think we would be happy with how we played”, Tella concluded.
