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Bayern on the ground: Jeremie Frimpong celebrates the 3-0
Photo: Thilo Schmuelgen / REUTERS
The scene of the game:
Sometimes football seems like an unavoidable series of moments in which reporters are allowed to shout “of all things!” The Bundesliga top game between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern did its best to consolidate this impression. In the 18th minute, Robert Andrich tunneled past Dayot Upamecano with a cross, and Josip Stanišić held out his foot at the second post – 1-0 for Bayer. Andrich of all people, who was in the starting line-up because Exequiel Palacios was not yet fit again. Upamecano, of all people, was playing again after an injury break. And above all: Stanišić of all people. Because the opponents who ignored him in the penalty area before he scored are his former and probably future teammates. Last summer, Stanišić was loaned to Leverkusen from Bayern.
The result:
With a 3-0 win, Bayer Leverkusen extended their lead in the table against harmless Munich.
Stanišić (18th minute) and Alejandro Grimaldo (50th) scored for the Werkself, Jeremie Frimpong added the final goal (90th + 5th). Read a detailed match report here.
Alonso and Tuchel are experimenting:
Thomas Tuchel surprised by starting two central defenders, Min-jae Kim and Upamecano, who had only returned to team training during the week. Winter signing Sasha Boey also celebrated his starting eleven debut. Xabi Alonso was similarly keen to experiment: Bayern loanee Stanišić was unexpectedly called into the starting line-up, while Jeremie Frimpong initially sat on the bench, as did striker Patrik Schick. The fact that Stanišić is wearing a Bayer and not a Bayern jersey this season illustrates the diametrically opposed squad planning in Leverkusen (bought with foresight in the summer) and Munich (surprisingly renegotiated in the winter).
Eight-minute delay:
The kick-off of the top game was delayed due to the now almost obligatory protests against the planned investor entry into the German Football League. The Leverkusen North Curve adapted the protest to the Rhineland event of the year: the carnival. The fans threw sweets onto the field with Kölsch “Kamelle”. For eight minutes, stewards had the thankless task of fishing out the small chewy candies that children usually pick up during carnival parades from the blades of grass.
15-minute statement:
Tuchel had demanded a “statement performance” from his players. At least in the first quarter of an hour, his team said the following: Leverkusen may be unbeaten for 30 competitive games in a row, but we are still Bayern! With their pressing, the guests from Munich forced Leverkusen, who were otherwise so confident on the ball, to make inaccurate flying balls. But the Werkself got better and better - and took the lead through a moment of all things. Bayern scored three times in the first half, and according to the Sky commentator, Harry Kane only touched the ball seven times in the first 45 minutes.
Bayer is the new Bayern
: In recent years, FC Bayern has shown what many Bundesliga fans find annoying in winning important games and thus the title race. This season, the Leverkusen team seems to be adopting more and more traditionally Bavarian characteristics: playing with the self-confidence that they will score the decisive goal at some point; force victories in the final stages; to be accused of stupidity, although in reality the opponent was systematically worn down. Now this list can be supplemented by top performances in top games.
The perfect disguise:
The city of Leverkusen is only a few S-Bahn stations away from the carnival stronghold of Cologne, so the fifth season, which is currently raging in the Rhineland, was present. Camels were thrown, goalkeeper Lukáš Hrádecký celebrated in the arms of a clown after the final whistle, and other fans also appeared in costume. There was a carnival atmosphere in the BayArena, helped by the fact that the home team managed to perfectly imitate a future German champion. Leverkusen are now five points ahead of Bayern, with 13 match days still to play.
Bayern scare Grimaldo:
Last summer, Leverkusen signed Alejandro Grimaldo, a 27-year-old largely unknown in Germany, on a free transfer from Benfica Lisbon. He is now one of the best full-backs in the Bundesliga and made his debut for the Spanish national team. As in the first leg at the Allianz Arena, Grimaldo scored against Bayern with his excellent left foot. It was his eighth goal this Bundesliga season. How self-confident Grimaldo is at the moment was shown in the 63rd minute when he curled a corner into the crossbar.
Showdown on the Sky microphone:
On Saturday evening not only did the two best Bundesliga teams meet, there was also a reunion between the league's thinnest coach and the most frank experts. When Bayern last played on Saturday evening in November, Tuchel canceled the Sky interview with Lothar Matthäus after the game. Despite the 4-0 win at Borussia Dortmund, the 50-year-old did not respond well to the previously critical Sky experts at the time.
This time, Tuchel's indignation was directed at the performance of his players, especially when they conceded the first goal. “Clear lack of concentration,” said Tuchel, who couldn’t believe that Andrich’s cross found its way past all the Bayern players and to his ex-player “Stani”. Thomas Müller also stood in front of the Sky microphone, stunned but primarily angry. “We have a mentality in our game, especially with the ball,” said Müller, who came on as a substitute in the 60th minute of the game. “I’m missing, and we can quote our Oliver Kahn, some of the balls.”
This is how it continues:
Bayern are already expecting the next important game on Wednesday (9 p.m.; stream: Dazn): In the round of 16 of the Champions League, the German record champions will meet Lazio Rome. The first leg takes place in Italy. Leverkusen, on the other hand, will not be back in the Bundesliga until next Saturday (3:30 p.m.; TV: Sky).