Nigerian striker Victor Boniface had a quiet outing as Bayer Leverkusen suffered a heavy 5-1 loss to Flamengo’s U-20 side in a pre-season friendly on Friday.

The match marked Erik ten Hag’s first game in charge of the Bundesliga side, following his exit from Manchester United last October. Ten Hag was brought in this summer to replace Xabi Alonso, who guided Leverkusen to a stellar previous campaign.

The Dutch coach kept faith in Alonso’s 3-4-2-1 formation, fielding a strong starting lineup that included Boniface, Jonas Hofmann, and new goalkeeper Mark Flekken. However, things quickly spiraled out of control.

Flamengo’s youngsters stunned Leverkusen, racing to a 4-0 lead before halftime. Lorran got the first goal, before a botched clearance from Arthur resulted in an own goal. Boniface and Flekken were both taken off in the 36th minute as the team struggled to regain control.

The Brazilian side continued their dominance, adding goals through Matheus Goncalves and Pedro Leao. Gusttavo made it 5-0 before Montrell Culbreath scored a late consolation for Leverkusen.

While it’s only a pre-season fixture, the performance has raised early questions about how quickly Ten Hag can rebuild the squad and make his mark at Leverkusen.

Fans will be hoping for a sharper display from Boniface and the rest of the team in their upcoming warm-up games.