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Leverkusen (dpa / lsw) - TSG 1899 Hoffenheim was unable to stop the new league leader in the Bundesliga and missed a big step towards international ranks.
The team of coach Sebastian Hoeneß lost on Sunday evening at the end of the 11th matchday after two own dismissals with 1: 4 (0: 2) at Bayer Leverkusen and has thus been without a league away win since September.
The Werkself, led by double goal scorer Leon Bailey, on the other hand, is even ahead of the permanent champions from Munich a week before the soccer hit against FC Bayern.
Bailey scored in a thrilling duel of the Europa League group winners with a dream goal after a creative corner variant (4th) and as a ball thief after a catastrophic back pass from Hoffenheim's striker Andrej Kramaric (27th).
After Christoph Baumgartner's (50th) goal, U21 international Florian Wirtz (55th) and Lucas Alario (90th + 1 / penalty) made the score.
Hoffenheim's Florian Grillitsch first saw yellow-red (65th), later Stefan Posch (79th) also got the traffic light card.
For the first time since September 12, 2014, or exactly 2284 days, Bayer is in first place at the end of a game day.
At that time it was the third, at a later point in time than now Leverkusen was last at the top in February 2010.
With the future world champion Toni Kroos in midfield and Jupp Heynckes as coach.
For Hoffenheim, who like Leverkusen won the group in the Europa League with 16 points, an upward trend ended after three games in a row without defeat.
The team of coach Sebastian Hoeneß is in eleventh place after eleven match days.
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Bayer's rush to the top of the table almost got a severe setback early on.
After 14 seconds Grillitsch came free in front of Bayer goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky to head the ball.
In contrast to Monday against Augsburg, when he scored his first two Bundesliga goals after 996 days in a 3-1 draw, the Austrian didn't score this time.
Bayer took the lead early on, and that with a stroke of genius.
After a brief corner with Nadiem Amiri, Bailey flicked the ball almost from the right flank into the far corner with an untenable left.
When celebrating the goal, the Jamaican sprinted towards assistant coach Rob Maas.
The ex-professional from Arminia Bielefeld, Hertha BSC and MSV Duisburg has been assistant to his Dutch compatriot Peter Bosz in Leverkusen since summer and is responsible for the standards in this role and apparently had the idea for the variant.
The horn concert afterwards around the BayArena was not a spontaneous action by celebrating Bayer fans.
But a long-planned convoy of farmers with decorated tractors that took place at the same time.
From then on, the two strong teams always looked for the way forward, numerous opportunities on both sides were the result.
The 2-0 result, however, from a blackout by Kramaric.
Bailey sprinted into his 70-meter back pass to goalkeeper Oliver Baumann and pushed the ball.
It was his ninth goal in the last nine competitive games.
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Baumgartner's Schlenzer to 1: 2 made the game really open again.
Baumgartner almost equalized for two minutes, but missed from seven meters.
Bayer punished that and, after a nice filing by Schick, followed up through Wirtz.
Substitute Alario set the end point in stoppage time.
Information on bundesliga.de
Report on the truck convoy at Radio Leverkusen