Ibrahim Maza and Can Uzun: The hidden rivalry ahead of Bayer Leverkusen vs. Eintracht Frankfurt
As if Bayer Leverkusen’s Matchday 3 curtain-raiser against Eintracht Frankfurt wasn’t already an exciting enough prospect, two of the teams’ bright young attackers, Ibrahim Maza and Can Uzun, are set to rekindle a rivalry that began at youth level.
The two attacking gems have come along way from their time in the academies of Hertha Berlin and Nuremberg respectively, but whether they’ve left some heated feelings in the past is a separate story.
The two met in a high-stakes quarter-final tie in the U19 DFB Cup in the 2022/23 season, where their emotions eventually got the better of them to the extent that it resulted in an off-the-ball incident between the two.
For Maza and his Berlin side, that moment was no doubt quickly forgotten after they advanced to the semi-finals courtesy of a 3-1 win.
Even sweeter for Maza was the fact that he notched the first goal of the game, while Uzun’s strike at 2-0 down to make it 2-1 wasn’t enough to inspire a comeback.
However, now with both of their respective sides gunning for Bundesliga glory, there’s every chance that those competitive sparks could fly again on Matchday 3.
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