Bayer Leverkusen’s unbeaten Bundesliga streak ends in heartbreak.
Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso was left with a “bitter” taste after his team’s impressive 35-game unbeaten run in the Bundesliga came to an end with a 3-2 defeat to RB Leipzig on Saturday.
Under Alonso’s guidance, Leverkusen had developed a knack for scoring crucial late goals, and it seemed like history might repeat itself when the referee reviewed a potential penalty in the 86th minute.
However, the decision went against Leverkusen, and they suffered their first defeat to a German opponent since May 2023.
The loss marks the end of an era for Leverkusen, who had gone unbeaten for an entire season en route to winning the 2023-24 title.
Alonso’s team will now look to regroup and start a new chapter in their quest for success.
“It’s hard, it’s bitter,” Alonso told German broadcaster Sky. “I don’t think we deserved to lose today.”
The defeat left Leverkusen one result away from matching Hamburg’s tally of 36 games unbeaten in 1982-83 — the Bundesliga’s second-longest run after Bayern Munich’s record of 53 under Pep Guardiola.
Leipzig came back from 2-0 down as they made the most of relatively few chances, generally on the counter, to seal a comeback win.
Their three goals came from 10 shots to Leverkusen’s 27.
Leverkusen scored twice in the space of six first-half minutes, first when Jeremie Frimpong intercepted a loose pass, sent defender El Chadaille Bitshiabu the wrong way and beat goalkeeper Péter Gulácsi.
Alex Grimaldo then finished off a team move that included new signing Martin Terrier drawing Gulacsi out of position.
Still, the momentum was with Leipzig at half-time after Kevin Kampl‘s added-time header, and Openda then turned the game around with two precise finishes.
He leveled the score with a shot from a tight angle near the touchline, and made it 3-2 with a curling effort from outside the box.
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Alonso told a press conference
“We’ll take a lot of positives and negatives from this game”
“We played a good game in the first half. We were happy with that and wanted to build on it in the second.
[But] We had no control in the second half and gave Leipzig too much space. We didn’t do well in the back line.
“We will learn from these mistakes. It’s not good to let an opponent come back after leading 2-0. But it’s a process, we’re still early in the season.”
Alonso called for more unity in defence as his team look to retain their title this season.
“We were in a good flow after taking a 2-0 lead, but we then have to be ready to defend.”
“We want to attack together, but we also have to defend together. We’ll work through the game after the international break.”
Leverkusen were the better side and could have gained a bigger advantage before the break with early chances through Edmond Tapsoba and Piero Hincapié, the latter hitting the bar with a header.
“Of course it hurts because we didn’t take our chances today,” Frimpong said.
“In the end we lost because Leipzig took their chances better. It was a good game, but we have to score goals. We will continue to work on that in training.”
Following their defeat, Leverkusen will look to bounce back when they visit Hoffenheim on September 14, before embarking on their Champions League campaign with a trip to Feyenoord on September 19.
