After 361 days and 51 games, Bayer Leverkusen suffered defeat, losing 3-0 to Atalanta in the Europa League final on Wednesday. It ended the longest unbeaten run in Europe since the end of World War II and prevented the German club from clinching its second trophy of the season. Leverkusen just ended its Bundesliga season with an undefeated record and were two games away from an undefeated season.
A hat trick of Ademola Lookman set the tone as Leverkusen could not rely on their magic in the late games, as they have done so often in the past year. Lookman only opened the scoring in the 12th minute of play by ignoring Leverkusen's game plan and made them pay again in the 26th minute. He put it away in the final fifteen minutes with a left-footed rocket shot from the corner of the penalty area.
While Victor Boniface Coming in after half-time to try to bring stability, Atalanta's teeming defense under manager Gian Piero Gasperini was able to contain him and his teammates, securing their first major trophy since their first and only cup title, winning the Coppa Italia in 1963 . also Gasperini's 200th victory at the Italian club.
It took a formidable performance to beat Leverkusen, but the chances of more trophies are not over for Leverkusen as they still have a chance to win the DFB Pokal title. Leverkusen take on FC Kaiserslautern on Saturday to try to end their season on a high note.
