Bayer Leverkusen reached the Champions League’s last 16 once again despite playing out an underwhelming stalemate with Olympiacos.
Bayer Leverkusen sealed their place in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 after a goalless draw against Olympiacos in the second leg of their play-off tie.
Holding a two-goal cushion from their first-leg victory in Greece, Leverkusen did not need to chase the game but still carved out several opportunities at home.
However, a lack of cutting edge in front of goal meant the contest ended 0-0 on the night.
Fresh off his brace in the opening encounter, Patrik Schick nearly added to his tally early on. The striker first glanced a header wide from Alejandro Grimaldo’s inviting cross before miscuing an attempted lob over goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis.
Jonas Hofmann produced the only effort on target in a quiet first half, testing the keeper inside four minutes.
Olympiacos threatened briefly after the interval when Gelson Martins forced a sharp save from Janis Blaswich, while his dangerous cross narrowly missed Chiquinho inside the area.
Leverkusen regained control and came closest to breaking the deadlock just past the hour mark, only for Grimaldo’s powerful strike to crash against the crossbar.
Schick had one final opportunity in stoppage time after being picked out by Aleix Garcia, but he lifted his effort wide with only the goalkeeper to beat.
Despite failing to replicate the attacking fluency shown at Stadio Georgios Karaiskaki in the first leg, Leverkusen comfortably advanced on aggregate.
The German side generated an expected goals (xG) figure of 0.69 from seven attempts, compared to Olympiacos’ 0.21, underlining the limited threat from both teams.
Progression ensures Leverkusen reach the Champions League last 16 in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2014-15.
They also extended their impressive defensive form at home, recording a fifth consecutive clean sheet in all competitions, their longest such streak on home soil in nearly a decade.
