Heynckes rallies Leverkusen for Europa League ’battle
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MADRID (Reuters) - Bayer Leverkusen will "fight until they fall down" to overturn a 3-2 Europa League deficit at Villarreal in their last-16, second leg on Thursday, coach Jupp Heynckes said.
Heynckes, who coached Real Madrid to a Champions League title in 1998, told a news conference he expected a similarly strong performance from his players to the one that earned a 1-0 Bundesliga win at Mainz on Sunday.
"It makes the job harder (being a goal down) but we said from the start we are not going to give up the tie and that we'll try and make the impossible possible," the 65-year-old said. "The team will battle until they fall down."
Villarreal have the advantage for the second leg at their Madrigal stadium after Brazil striker Nilmar netted twice as a second-half substitute in Germany last week.
Defender Gonzalo Rodriguez said it will be crucial for the Spanish club to make a solid start.
"The important thing will be to stop them scoring in the opening minutes because that will give them a big lift," he told a news conference.
"But we know that we have good forwards and they will definitely get chances to score," he added. "The most important thing is that they don't create any."
(Reporting by Iain Rogers, editing by Justin Palmer; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
Heynckes, who coached Real Madrid to a Champions League title in 1998, told a news conference he expected a similarly strong performance from his players to the one that earned a 1-0 Bundesliga win at Mainz on Sunday.
"It makes the job harder (being a goal down) but we said from the start we are not going to give up the tie and that we'll try and make the impossible possible," the 65-year-old said. "The team will battle until they fall down."
Villarreal have the advantage for the second leg at their Madrigal stadium after Brazil striker Nilmar netted twice as a second-half substitute in Germany last week.
Defender Gonzalo Rodriguez said it will be crucial for the Spanish club to make a solid start.
"The important thing will be to stop them scoring in the opening minutes because that will give them a big lift," he told a news conference.
"But we know that we have good forwards and they will definitely get chances to score," he added. "The most important thing is that they don't create any."
(Reporting by Iain Rogers, editing by Justin Palmer; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
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