Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 Union Berlin: Hjulmand's unbeaten start continues with routine triumph

Kasper Hjulmand's unbeaten start to life as Bayer Leverkusen's head coach continued as he led his team to a 2-0 victory over Union Berlin in the Bundesliga on Saturday. 

After drawing away to PSV in the Champions League in midweek, Hjulmand and his team responded at the BayArena to move up to fourth in the standings. 

Leverkusen hit the front in the 33rd minute through Ernest Poku, who rounded off a fine team move by converting Lucas Vazquez's cross out of Frederik Ronnow's grasp.

Despite dominating the first half, Leverkusen were unable to add to their lead before the break, but they needed just four minutes after the restart to double their advantage. 

Christian Kofane pounced on an error from Ronnow as he attempted to play out from the back, with the Leverkusen forward rounding the visiting goalkeeper and finishing into an empty net. 

It almost got even better for Hjulmand's side just before the hour, but half-time substitute Ibrahim Maza, who replaced Alejandro Grimaldo after he sustained a cut to his forehead and required stitches, saw his strike thunder against the woodwork. 

Leverkusen continued to dominate proceedings with Aleix Garcia and Malik Tillman firing wide late on, cruising to a second consecutive league victory. 

Data Debrief: Leverkusen finding their feet under Hjulmand

Having started the season with a draw and defeat under Erik ten Hag, Leverkusen's new-look squad have seemingly clicked during Hjulmand's short tenure, and this was perhaps one of their most dominant displays under him. 

Indeed, Leverkusen generated an expected goals (xG) total of 2.5 from their 19 shots, though only three were on target, compared to Union's 0.55 from their eight attempts at Mark Flekken's net. 

The Werkself are now unbeaten in each of their last five Bundesliga matches (W3 D2), with only Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich (both 14 games) currently on longer such runs in the competition.