Martínez on García and Andrich: 'Things are sometimes exaggerated on the outside'

Bayer Leverkusen head coach Carles Martínez said the reported tension between Aleix García and Robert Andrich had been exaggerated, following the 2-1 win over Köln.

After the 1-0 Europa League defeat to Marseille, Andrich had made headlines by publicly and sharply criticising García's attitude for failing to track back for Amine Gouiri's winning goal.

García, however, gave the necessary response on the pitch, opening the scoring against Köln with an elegant free kick. Patrik Schick doubled the lead five minutes from the end, before Said El Mala's stoppage-time goal settled the score.

Having avoided losing three Bundesliga matches in a row for the first time since August 2022, Leverkusen go into the international break in fifth place, five points behind Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund at the top.

Speaking after the match, Martínez played down claims that the relationship between the two players had broken down following Andrich's comments.

"There is a good bond between the two of them and they talk to each other. Sometimes things can be exaggerated on the outside. Within the team, life goes on. Mistakes are part of football. The important thing is to react and to understand what happened and why. If the same situation happens again, you have to act differently. García was much more aggressive against Köln," Martínez said.

Teammate Ibrahim Maza also praised the Spanish midfielder's performance: "This shows his character and his mentality. He showed on the pitch how important a player he is for us. Maybe he went through a slightly difficult spell in the last few games, which is completely natural. He has played in every game so far; that can be physically and mentally draining. He responded with an incredible goal and then took complete control of the game. I think it was a great reaction."

García, who had 133 touches and completed 103 of his 111 passes against Köln, was the best on the pitch in those areas, while his 30 passes into the final third and two chances created also made him one of the architects of the win.

Leverkusen's next Bundesliga match is against Paderborn on 21 November, and eight days later they travel to Borussia Dortmund.