Erik ten Hag’s first game in charge of Bayer Leverkusen ended in humiliation as they were thumped 5-1 by Flamengo’s Under-20 side.
Ten Hag replaced Xabi Alonso in May following the Spaniard’s decision to take over at Real Madrid.
The former Manchester United boss will be hoping to emulate the success Alonso enjoyed in his time at Leverkusen, during which they dethroned Bayern Munich as Bundesliga champions in 2023-24 and won the DFB-Pokal. Their only defeat in that campaign was a 3-0 loss to Atalanta in the Europa League final.
Leverkusen finished second last season, but they appeared a long way from their former glories under Alonso in a humbling defeat in Rio de Janeiro.
“The result looks bad, but I don’t really give a shit about pre-season results. We must never lose, not by that margin too,” Ten Hag told Bild.
“But it was important to me that I didn’t lose any players. It would have been better to play the game later.
“At Leverkusen, we also have high expectations when the players are young. But we mustn’t judge them too harshly.”
Leverkusen goalkeeper added: “Lukas Hradecky was equally taken aback by the quality with the Rio de Janeiro club’s ranks.
“I understood them to be a mixed team [with pros] just like us. But this was certainly a good lesson for the young players, to compete at this high level.
“No wonder that so many talents are here and come to Europe all the time – they impressed me very much and deserved to win.”
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