Hjulmand lauds Schick after Leverkusen take big step towards Champions League last 16

Bayer Leverkusen head coach Kasper Hjulmand hailed Patrik Schick’s performance in their 2-0 win over Olympiacos in the Champions League.

Schick scored both goals as the German side secured a two-goal lead in their play-off tie, heading into their home leg next week.

The Czechia striker became just the second player to score twice in a Champions League knockout match for Leverkusen, after Michael Ballack in 2001-02 against Liverpool.

It was also Leverkusen’s first-ever away win in the knockout rounds of the competition, previously failing to win their nine such matches (D2 L7).

After their squandering of big chances in a league-phase matchup against Olympiacos led to a defeat last month, Hjulmand was relieved to see his team end on the winning side on Wednesday.

“After the three big chances in the first half, I already had déjà vu. But we’re very satisfied with the result and the performance,” said the Leverkusen head coach.

“Patrik always gets a lot right, he’s so sharp with his finishing. Over the last few days, I’ve seen, even in training, that he was very, very sharp.”

Well… pic.twitter.com/pIYPOsgjK9

— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) February 18, 2026

Leverkusen conceded just one shot on target throughout the 90 minutes, though Olympiacos did see a goal disallowed for offside.

With an average age of 28 years and 58 days, Leverkusen named their oldest-ever starting lineup for a Champions League match.

Perhaps that experience helped, with captain Robert Andrich praising their defensive presence in Greece.

“We have done a much better job of keeping the pressure phases away from us,” said Andrich when comparing the first leg to their league-phase performance.

“I also think that, overall, we’ve defended very well. We’ve also repeatedly tried to play out from the back a bit earlier against the press. That’s something we had also discussed beforehand.”