Köln defender lashes out at "arrogant" Leverkusen after Pokal defeat | OneFootball

2. Bundesliga side FC Köln suffered a heartbreaking DFB-Pokal quarter-final exit on Wednesday, squandering a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 after extra time to German champions and local rivals Bayer Leverkusen.

After the final whistle, a scuffle broke out between players from both sides.

Speaking to German broadcaster ARD after the match, FC Köln's Dominique Heintz hit out at the attitude of the Leverkusen players, describing them as "arrogant".

"I have to control myself not to say the wrong thing today and talk about how arrogant many of the players on the Leverkusen bench were today. What they shouted, how they presented themselves, especially at the end, how they provoked us," Heintz said, before singling out one player in particular.

“What's the matter with [Granit] Xhaka? He's supposed to be one of the sensible ones.”

Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso was surprised by Heintz's criticism.

"Really? I can't explain that. It was a very intense game. But I didn't see any arrogance from my players," said the Spaniard when asked about Heintz's comments.