Erik ten Hag endured a nightmarish start to life as Bayer Leverkusen manager after his side suffered a 5–1 defeat to Flamengo’s Under-20 team in a pre-season friendly on Friday.
The match, held at Estadio da Gávea in Rio de Janeiro, saw the Bundesliga giants concede four goals in the first half alone.
Lorran opened scoring within two minutes before an own goal from Arthur compounded Leverkusen’s woes.
Matheus Goncalves and Pedro Leao added further strikes before the break, leaving Ten Hag’s men trailing 4–0 at half-time.
Substitute Gusttavo Silva made it 5–0 shortly after the interval, completing a stunning performance for the Brazilian youngsters.
Leverkusen pulled one back later in the second half following a wave of substitutions that included Granit Xhaka, Patrik Schick, and Alejandro Grimaldo, but it was little consolation in a one-sided affair.
Despite fielding several regular starters including Victor Boniface, Amine Adli, and Jonas Hofmann, Leverkusen looked disjointed throughout, a concern for Ten Hag as he aims to build momentum ahead of the new Bundesliga season.
Leverkusen’s next friendlies are scheduled against VFL Bochum on July 27 and Fortuna Sittard on August 1.
They begin their league campaign on August 22 against Hoffenheim.