Keita Balde Diao scored the winner as Lazio beat Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League qualifying tie at the Stadio Olimpico this evening.
Leverkusen created the better chances in a tight contest in the Italian capital, but a moment of quality in the final third of the pitch was enough to hand Lazio the advantage.
Below, Sports Mole takes a look at the key talking points from the first leg.
Match statistics
LAZIO
Shots: 14
On target: 4
Possession: 51%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 10
BAYER LEVERKUSEN
Shots: 10
On target: 2
Possession: 49%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 16
Was the result fair?
In truth, Leverkusen can walk away feeling slightly hard done by on a night when they probably did enough to at least earn a draw. There was very little to choose between the two sides in an opening 45 minutes which was largely played out in midfield, but the visitors seemed reinvigorated by the interval. The Leverkusen attack started to move the ball at pace and they looked odds-on to make the breakthrough in an extended spell on top. However, a mistake always looked possible at the other end of the pitch and Lazio capitalised to clinch the win.
Lazio's performance
Lazio boss Stefano Pioli will walk away delighted knowing that his side are ahead on aggregate without really producing their best football in a tight match at the Stadio Olimpico. The Lazio defence proved to be key as they survived long spells of pressure from Leverkusen, who always looked capable of creating space when they stepped up the tempo in the second half. Pioli is sure to be worried by his side's struggles in midfield, where they often failed to win 50/50 battles which could have proved pivotal on a different night.
However, Lazio fought impressively from start to finish, despite seeming to lack a bit of quality in the final third of the pitch. The introduction of Keita at the break was vital, and his pace always seemed to be a concern for the Leverkusen back four. A break finally arrived for the striker, who opened the scoring in fine fashion as Lazio battled their own troubles to earn the lead at the halfway stage in the tie.
Bayer Leverkusen's performance
Roger Schmidt's side would have been praised for an excellent away performance had the luck gone their way this evening. Unfortunately, a couple of close calls went against them but the Leverkusen boss will certainly accept that his team were punished for not making a breakthrough during an excellent 25-minute spell in the second half. After looking slow in possession for much of the first half, the likes of Karim Bellarabi and Hakan Calhanoglu started to come to life in the final third of the pitch but a mixture of poor service and fine defending allowed Lazio to survive.
Despite looking the more dangerous of the two sides, an individual mistake always appeared to be around the corner in the Leverkusen defence and it was certainly a forgettable night for Kyriakos Papadopoulos, whose error allowed Keita to score the vital goal in the 77th minute. Jonathan Tah was excellent for most of the game, but he also seem troubled by the direct approach adopted by Keita. Schmidt will be confident of overcoming Lazio in the second leg if his side can find the extra piece of quality which was missing from their performance tonight.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Lars Bender: Keita made the vital contribution while Tah was brilliant for 75 minutes, but Lars Bender stood out in a match which tested the physical qualities of both midfields. The Leverkusen skipper controlled the tempo of his side's play in possession, but it was his defensive game which impressed most as he broke up play and made a number of vital tackles.
Biggest gaffe
It really was a poor night for Papadopoulos, who completed a permanent move to Leverkusen in the summer after spending last season on loan at the club. The Greek defender was caught out of position too many times, and he was finally punished for a mistake when he failed with a clearance to allow Keita to begin the run which produced the winner.
Referee performance
Jonas Eriksson was a busy man from the first whistle as the battle for superiority often threatened to boil over. Leverkusen will point to a couple of second-half decisions when reflecting on the game. Despite first appearing to be a routine goal, replays proved that Stefan Kiessling was perhaps in an offside position when Calhanoglu's effort struck him on the way in. However, the referee did miss the ball strike Lucas Biglia on the arm as he put pressure on Kiessling just a few moments before the breakthrough.
What next?
Lazio: Pioli's side host Bologna in their Serie A opener on Saturday before making the trip to Germany next Wednesday.
Leverkusen: A visit to Hannover awaits Leverkusen on Saturday ahead of the second leg.
Callum Mulvihill
