Things could not have gone much worse for Erik ten Hag in his first match in charge of Bayer Leverkusen – conceding five to Flamengo’s youth side.<\/strong><\/p>\n The former Manchester United<\/a> manager began his tenure on the touchline as Leverkusen got their pre-season underway on Friday.<\/p>\n 5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> But the German giants, who appointed Ten Hag as their replacement for Xabi Alonso<\/a>, were left shocked by Flamengo’s Under-20s. <\/p>\n After just 45 minutes, the Brazilian youth side had completely embarrassed the former Bundesliga<\/a> champions. <\/p>\n Flamengo’s U20s incredibly went in at half-time of their friendly 4-0 up at Estadio da Gavea in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.<\/p>\n And Leverkusen<\/a> ended up being whooped 5-1 by their young opponents, marking a woeful start for Ten Hag<\/a>.<\/p>\n His starting line-up wasn’t devoid of quality either, with Victor Boniface, Amine Adli and Jonas Hoffman regular starters. <\/p>\n Summer signing from Brentford<\/a>, Mark Flekken, was in goal too.<\/p>\n The scoring was opened after only two minutes by Lorran before an own goal from Arthur doubled Flamengo U20s’ lead.<\/p>\n Matheus Goncalves and Pedro Leao netted two more just before the break, to pile the misery on Leverkusen.<\/p>\n Soon after half-time though, things managed to get even worse.<\/p>\n Substitute Gusttavo Silva scored a fifth for Flamengo’s youth side, putting the German giants FIVE goals behind.<\/p>\n 5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> 5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> 5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> Ten Hag was then forced to act on the hour mark, although full rotation after 60 minutes was likely pre-planned. <\/p>\n Granit Xhaka<\/a>, who has been linked with Sunderland<\/a>, Patrik Schick, Alejandro Grimaldo, Nathan Tella and Edmond Tapsoba came on.<\/p>\n Robert Andrich, Exequiel Palacios and Lukas Hradecky were also introduced as Leverkusen’s main men looked to save the day.<\/p>\n And they did make a difference, with them getting a goal back and keeping Flamengo U20s at bay, losing 5-1 in the end. <\/p>\n Of course, this was Leverkusen’s first pre-season game after the summer break and there will have been some rusty legs.<\/p>\n However, to lose to a youth team in such a manner will be very concerning for new boss Ten Hag.<\/p>\n 5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> Leverkusen’s next friendly comes on July 27 when they face VFL Bochum before they take on Dutch side Fortuna on August 1.<\/p>\n The Bundesliga season then starts on August 22, with Ten Hag’s first league match coming against Hoffenheim.<\/p>\n The ex- United manager will hope to see a marked improvement from his squad leading up to that after their embarrassment in Brazil.<\/p>\n He could look to bring in some new signings, including a player he has signed twice at two different clubs in Antony<\/a>. <\/p>\n Ten Hag described the \u00a382million winger as being ‘like a son’ to him<\/a> and refused to rule out another reunion. <\/p>\n![\"Leverkusen's](\"https:\/\/talksport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/07\/victor-boniface-bayer-04-leverkusen-1010892618.jpg?strip=all&w=960\")
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