Leverkusen salvage 2-2 draw at Copenhagen as Hatzidiakos own goal

Bayer Leverkusen rescued a stoppage-time point to draw 2-2 with FC Copenhagen in a dramatic Champions League group-stage opener at Parken Stadium on Thursday, September 18, 2025. The Danish hosts led twice but conceded in the 91st minute when defender Pantelis Hatzidiakos turned a low cross into his own net, cancelling out Robert Silva’s late header and leaving both sides to share the spoils.

Copenhagen struck first in the ninth minute when Jordan Larsson finished a well-worked move, controlling a half-volley from Elias Achouri’s cross to catch Leverkusen flat-footed. The hosts had further chances, including a Mohamed Elyounoussi effort that struck the crossbar, while both goalkeepers produced key saves to keep the score level for long spells.

Leverkusen drew level in the 82nd minute through Alejandro Grimaldo, who curled a superb 25-yard free kick over the wall and into the top corner. Match coverage noted that the strike moved Grimaldo ahead of Xabi Alonso as the Spaniard with the most direct free-kick goals in Champions League history. Four minutes later Copenhagen substitute Robert Silva nodded home a Rodrigo Huescas cross to restore the lead, only for Hatzidiakos’s...