Leverkusen in control of title race after thrashing Bayern
Leverkusen, Germany - Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen outplayed champions Bayern Munich for a 3-0 victory on Saturday that sent them five points clear at the top of the league and put them firmly in charge of the title race.
Goals from Josip Stanisic, Alejandro Grimaldo and Jeremie Frimpong made sure of the three points as Leverkusen, who have never won a Bundesliga title, and stretched their unbeaten run to 31 matches across all competitions this season. Bayern, chasing a 12th straight league crown, were nowhere to be seen and managed only a single shot on target over the 90 minutes.
Xabi Alonso’s team, who also twice hit the woodwork, are now on 55 points, with Bayern in second place on 50.
“Today it was a very disciplined performance from my team,” said Alonso. “It was not easy but we waited for our chances. Maybe we did not have the ball too much today but we wanted to be dominant even without the ball. It was a very important win but it is just three points,” he said.
The game started with an eight-minute delay after fans threw candy onto the pitch before the start to protest the league’s plan to let a financial investor take a stake in the Bundesliga media rights company.
Once proceedings got underway, the hosts proved more aggressive than Bayern, who initially had possession but lacked attacking ideas. The Bavarians were also shaky at the back, struggling with Leverkusen’s pressure.
They were caught napping when Robert Andrich sent a cutback through the box with Stanisic, on loan from Bayern, left completely unmarked at the far
post to tap in.