In the Europa League round of 16, Bayer Leverkusen hosted Ferencváros at home and claimed a 2-0 victory. The German side took control early and did not relinquish it as the clock wound down.
The opening goal arrived in the 10th minute when Kerem Demirbay converted a pass from Florian Wirtz, giving Bayer a sharp lead. With just over four minutes left in the match, Edmond Tapsoba added a second goal to seal the win for the home team.
Notable was the presence of Serdar Azmoun, the former Zenit striker, who started for Bayer and was replaced in the 60th minute. Bayer’s goalkeeper Andrey Lunev did not feature in the squad for this fixture, with reports noting an injury had kept him out of Europa League duties and his contract with the club runs through the summer. The second leg is scheduled for March 16 in Budapest, where Ferencváros will have a chance to overturn the deficit on their home turf.
Separately, FIFA and UEFA have decided to exclude the Russian national team and all Russian clubs from competition under their jurisdiction. This decision put an end to expectations of Russian participation across continental events for the duration of the ban.
In the 2022 European campaigns, Russian clubs mostly sat out cup competition play, with the exception of Zenit, which reached the 1/16 stage of the Europa League but fell 2-3 on aggregate to Real Betis. Spartak Moscow advanced to the playoff phase courtesy of their group-stage performance, earning a showdown with RB Leipzig.
Former Romanian official Ovidiu Hategan recounted accusations of racism and bribery connected to Russia, sharing how those allegations were presented and challenged during the scrutiny that accompanied such matches.