BERLIN, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Mario Leitgeb's brace helped underdogs Wolfsberg to crush hosts' Monchengladbach 4-0 on the road in UEFA Europa League on Thursday.
The Austrian debutants routed Monchengladbach and inflicted the Germans the worst ever UEFA home defeat in the club's history.
Wolfsberg caught a perfect start into the first group stage encounter as Shon Weissmann met Romano Schmid's deflected cross at the near post to tap home the opener with only 13 minutes into the game.
The hosts tried to bounce back but Wolfsberg staged a well-positioned defense and doubled their advantage with 30 minutes played when Michael Liendl's free kick cross found Leitgeb, who nodded home the 2-0 lead into the top right corner.
To make things worse for the hosts, Wolfsberg kept it bowling and extended their lead as Marcel Ritzmaier capitalized on a rebound to make it 3-0 on the scoreboards.
Monchengladbach tried to make amendments as head coach Marco Rose fielded Breel Embolo for Florian Neuhaus.
However, Monchengladbach lacked in penetration and were unable to pose any threat to Wolfsberg's defense. Meanwhile, the visitors from Austria showed no mercy and sealed the deal in the 68th minute when Leitgeb wrapped up his brace after heading home Liendl's corner kick.
With the hammering victory, Wolfsberg share the top spot with AS Roma in Group J followed by Istanbul Basaksehir and Borussia Monchengladbach.
Elsewhere, Wolfsburg started with a win into their Europa League campaign after beating Ukrainian side FC Oleksandriya 4-1 on home soil.
The first-half goals from Maximilian Arnold and Admir Mehmedi smoothed the way for the win.
Oleksandriya reduced the arrears after the restart through Yevhen Banada. It was a short-lived joy as Wolfsburg's Josip Brekalo restored the two-goal lead only a minute later to make the game safe.
The victory lift Wolfsburg on the first place in Group I followed by KAA Gent, AS Saint-Etienne and FC Oleksandriya.
