Ibrahim Maza and summer signings deliver first Bundesliga victory for Carles Martínez
After last week's shock defeat at Eleversberg, Bayer Leverkusen - and their new coach, Carles Martínez - were in desperate need of a morale boost in front of their home fans. And they got just that, as Ibrahim Maza, as well as the summer signings of Facundo Medina and Miguel Gutiérrez, helped propel Die Werkself to an authoritative 4-0 triumph over Union Berlin at the BayArena.
It did not take very long for the hosts to take the Matchday 2 clash by the scruff of the neck, left-back Gutiérrez, who signed from Napoli just over two weeks' ago, squaring the ball back for Argentinian midfielder Ezequiel Fernández to steer it into the net in the opening minute of the match. Soon it would be 2-0, as Fernández's compatriot Medina, another summer signing, headed home Gutiérrez's cross, giving the Spaniard two assists in under half an hour.
Martínez was all smiles by the time the third goal wrapped up the points in the 48th minute - Patrik Schick prodding Jarell Quansah's low cross into the net - and he was positively jubilant when Maza, who had been lively throughout the encounter, put a bow on his charges' commanding display by evading a couple of flailing challenges and sweeping the ball past Union goalkeeper Frederik Rønnow.
"We started very strongly," said the new man in charge at his post-match press conference. "We showed the mentality we want to have this season. I'm so happy with our performance today."
Martínez reserved special praise for his summer signings, singling out Medina: "I don't like to talk about individuals too much, but when we decided to sign him, I knew we were getting more of a role or mentality than just a player, and today I simply told him to be himself and compete, which he did very well."
Watch: Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 Union Berlin - highlights
The Argentinian international was also in an extremely positive mood after the game, stating, "I'm genuinely pleased for the squad and for the effort we put in - I value the commitment and sacrifice shown by this team."
Maza, who picked up the Man of the Match award for his strong display, also earned warm words from his coach, who said: "I have to congratulate him. He understood that he and Miguel [Gutiérrez] had to be connected on the left, and they both created good things."
Another recent arrival who created a significant buzz - but this time just by coming off the bench in the second half - was returning star Moussa Diaby, who re-signed for the club from Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Ittihad on transfer deadline day.
"I've come back home," the French winger said, referring to the effusive reaction he received when he switched in for Schick in the 67th minute. "I was here for four years, I left, and now I'm back. It's great to have all the fans behind me. I'm going to have to give them something in return."
With Leverkusen's summer signings starting to move up a gear, it will doubtless not be long before Diaby joins the likes of Medina and Gutiérrez - and fellow fan favourite Maza - in playing an instrumental role in his team's result. And why not on Matchday 3, when Die Werkself travel to Augsburg in search of a second consecutive Bundesliga success?
