Bayer Leverkusen have boosted their hopes of reaching the second round of the Champions League with victory over Zenit St Petersburg in Germany.
Bayer finally found a way through the Zenit rearguard on 58 minutes thanks to Giulio Donati's curling shot, which nestled in the bottom corner of Yuri Lodygin's net.
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It was a good reward for the Bundesliga club's industry in attack, having had opportunities to breakthrough earlier in the game with Wendell and Emir Spahic going close for the home side.
Son Heung-Min tried his best to forge a first-half lead for the hosts as he continually split the Zenit defence with through-balls that Bayer's attacking talent were unable to put away before the interval.
However, once they hit the front, Leverkusen wasted no time in extending their advantage as Kyriakos Papadopoulos headed Hakan Calhanoglu's pinpoint cross beyond the reach of the helpless Lodygin on 63 minutes.
The only blot on the home team's book came when Wendell was given a second yellow card late on for a handball, but his dismissal didn't affect the final outcome.
The result extends Leverkusen unbeaten run at home, having failed to lose a game at the Bayer Arena since March.
Chris O'Keefe
