Antonio Nusa and Rômulo strike as RB Leipzig sink Schalke
RB Leipzig ended their winless away run in style, beating Schalke 2-0 on Matchday 8. Antonio Nusa opened the scoring from the penalty spot, before Rômulo added a second late one to seal a dominant away win.
Schalke 0–2 RB Leipzig
Goals: 0-1 Nusa 37’ (pen.), 0-2 Rômulo 78’ (assist: Nusa)
Head coach Miron Muslić made three changes to his Schalke side following their DFB Cup defeat at Dynamo Dresden, with Junior Adamu, Timo Becker and Kenan Karaman all coming into the starting eleven. Martín Demichelis rotated his Leipzig line-up in five positions, recalling Maarten Vandevoordt in goal along with Benjamin Henrichs, Neil El Aynaoui, Brajan Gruda and top scorer Antonio Nusa, while Christopher Nkunku returned to the bench.
Nusa penalty settles a tight first half
Leipzig pressed from the start and were kept at bay by an inspired Loris Karius, the goalkeeper twice denying Nusa in the opening quarter of an hour. Schalke, playing with a back four for the first time this season, held firm for long periods, but their resistance broke in the 37th minute when Rômulo nicked the ball off Satoshi Tanaka inside the box and was fouled, with the referee pointing to the spot.
Nusa stepped up and sent his effort past Karius at 109 km/h to make it 0:1. Late in the half Leipzig thought they had doubled their lead through Rômulo, but after a VAR review the goal was ruled out for the ball having gone out of play before David Raum's cross.
Rômulo doubles the lead
Karius continued to frustrate Leipzig after the restart, saving well from Ezechiel Banzuzi and twice more from Nusa. Schalke's best openings came from set-pieces, with Adil Aouchiche's corners causing problems, but the equaliser never arrived.
Leipzig found their second in the 78th minute when Tidiam Gomis fed Nusa, who slipped the ball to Rômulo, and the substitute-turned-starter guided it into the far corner to all but confirm their win. Karius denied further chances from Johan Bakayoko and Gomis in the closing stages as Leipzig saw out a comfortable win.
Man of the Match: Loris Karius
Karius made a series of important saves throughout the afternoon, denying Nusa and Banzuzi on multiple occasions and keeping Schalke within touching distance of Leipzig despite facing ten shots on target. His performance earned him the Player of the Match award, with 46 percent of the vote.
Bundesliga Match Facts
xGoals: Schalke 0.75 - RB Leipzig 3.16
Fastest player: Brajan Gruda (Leipzig), 33.73 km/h
Lowest goal probability: 0:2 by Rômulo (Leipzig), 22 percent
Pass efficiency: Hee Chan Hwang (Schalke), +3.78
Fantasy Heroes: Antonio Nusa (RB Leipzig, 311 Points), Rômulo (RB Leipzig, 209 Points), Neil El Aynaoui (RB Leipzig, 196 Points)
