|
BERLIN, Jun. 9-- Goals from Moussa Diaby, Lucas Alario and Karim Bellarabi helped Bayer Leverkusen to ease past fourth-division outfit Saarbrucken 3-0 in the German Cup semifinal on Tuesday. Hosts Saarbrucken started defensively minded into the encounter and kept all their men in their territory. Leverkusen, which dominated possession and let the ball do the work, took only 11 minutes to break the deadlock on the road as Kerem Demirbay's perfectly timed lob into the box allowed Diaby to poke home from inside the box. The opener caused some damage as Saarbrucken wobbled while Leverkusen piled on the pressure to force the 2-0 lead eight minutes later as Alario tapped home a blocked shot on target. Peter Bosz' men controlled the proceedings on the pitch but failed to extend the lead despite promising chances before the break. After the restart things started where they left off as Leverkusen took the reins whereas Saarbrucken defended deep. Even though the hosts focused on their defense, their strategy did not pay off as relentless Leverkusen put the result beyond doubt at the hour mark when Demirbay had all time and space in the box to set up for Bellarabi, who made no mistake to slot home from the edge of the box. Timm Golley created the chances for the underdogs in the closing period before Leverkusen continued their onslaught. Despite more presentable chances, the visitors could not overcome Saarbrucken goalkeeper Daniel Batz for a fourth goal. | 
