Bayer Leverkusen head coach praises Ibrahim Maza’s (20) development: “He learns so quickly!”

Bayer Leverkusen head coach Kasper Hjulmand remains very pleased with the work of his protégée Ibrahim Maza. After yet another sparkling performance in last night’s DFB Pokal victory over Borussia Dortmund, the German-Algerian continues to prove all the hype around him justified. Maza also happens to be one of Hjulmand’s pet projects.

During his short coaching tenure in charge of die Werkself, former head coach Erik ten Hag tapped German midfielder Robert Andrich to serve as the squad’s captain. From the very beginning of his stint in charge, Hjulmand made clear that he did not necessarily agree with ten Hag’s decision. In the Danish coach’s mind, there were several other leadership candidates in the squad.

It ended up being the case that Maza supplanted Andrich in the starting XI. The highly touted new summer arrival has scored four goals and contributed two assists in seven matches across all competitions since taking over for Andrich alongside Aleix Garcia in midfield. Naturally, Hjulmand is very excited to have the 20-year-old working under his aegis.

Interestingly enough, Hjulmand has found a role for Andrich after all. The 31-year-old has plenty of experience working as a central defender. Whether giving Maza the occasional break in central midfield or working in various positions in Hjulmand’s back-three, the 19-times-capped German international is also back in the fray.

“We scored an excellent goal with great play out of the back,” Hjulmand remarked yesterday evening at the post-match press conference. “Then we defended well. There were several instances in the first half during which [Robert] Andrich defended very well.“

“He just learns so quickly,” Hjulmand answered in response to a later question about Maza. “We’ve been talking about that repeatedly. His personality renders him excellent to work with. He’s always looking to make the next step and see what he can learn. 

“He still has a lot to learn, but his development is outstanding,” Hjulmand continued. “His personality is that he always wants to lean and improve. It’s fabulous for Leverkusen that he’s representing this club.“

GGFN | Peter Weis