Everything went Leverkusen’s way last matchday - not only did the Werkself triumph 2-1 over Heidenheim, Bayern’s slump in form continued - a third defeat in a row against Bochum (3-2) was the first time that had happened to the Rekordmeister since 2015! Eight points separated the top two before the 23rd matchday and, with 17th place Mainz guests at the Bayarena, that would be extended to an unfathomable 11 point lead with a win before the Topspiel in Munich. Mainz were not an opponent to be underestimated however with the recent head to head results being fairly balanced - the 05’ers won two of the past five meetings, including the last home game - a 3-2 win for Mainz. Leverkusen would also have to contend with the rejuvenated Nadiem Amiri - the former Bayer 04 midfielder assisting twice in his first four games. Not to mention the arrival of Bo Henriksen from Zurich - would the ‘new manager bounce’ continue in Leverkusen (won his first game in charge 1-0 against Augsburg)? There were very few arguments to be made in favour of the visitors though - after all, this was the only team unbeaten at home facing the only team winless away. The writing was on the wall for a big Leverkusen win - or was it?
Spotlighted Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso made significant changes to the eleven that faced Heidenheim last Saturday. Lukas Hradecky started in goal but in front of him were Kossounou, Tah and Tapsoba; the first time since the 16th matchday that Alonso’s ‘preferred’ back three had started together thanks to international commitments. Grimaldo and Frimpong once again retained their places in the wingback positions, and the midfield remained unchanged too - Palacios still unable to shake off the injury he sustained in Leipzig. The third and final change came in the attack. Patrik Schick’s form had been rather lacklustre of late - as a result, Alonso opted to shake things up by using Adli, Wirtz (becoming the 4th youngest to reach 100 appearances) and Hofmann as the front three. Jonas Hofmann would hope to utilise this opportunity to perhaps kickstart his Ruckrunde - despite his early heroics, he had only one assist in his last 9 Bundesliga games.
Bundesliga rookie Bo Henriksen must have liked what he saw in their last game against Augsburg and consequently named an almost unchanged lineup. Robin Zentner started in goal, with a back three of Anthony Caci, Sepp van den Berg and Dominik Kohr (Hardkohr in his Leverkusen days). With Philip Mwene switched from the right to the left, Caci slotted into the left side of central defence in place of Hanche-Olsen. Captain Silvan Widmer began as right wingback. Nadiem Amiri, who left for Mainz in January, started next to Leandro Barreiro in central midfield and in attack, Karim Onisiwo led the line, supported by Jae Sung Lee and the scarred teenage sensation Brajan Gruda (had studs scrape across his face during training). Before the game, Henriksen said that they were not coming to just “sit back”, but to “cause problems” for Bayer 04. Fighting talk from the team in the relegation scrap.
The Mainz coach must have felt rather silly saying such strong words before the game as it took just a few minutes for the net to ripple. Hofmann took a freekick short to Xhaka, who then passed it wide to Grimaldo. His attempted cross was deflected however and the ball rolled kindly back to Xhaka who, first time, struck wonderfully with his left foot from just outside the box, catching Zentner completely off guard, with the ball looping over the goalkeeper into the top right corner (3’). What a way to score your first goal for your new club! There was concern however, as when Xhaka celebrated, he clutched his hamstring - it was just a trick however, one that even fooled the Leverkusen medical staff who were all ready to rush onto the pitch to help him! Leverkusen were now in the driving seat - or so they thought. Mainz soon equalised - with two ex-Bayer 04 players in starring roles. Nadiem Amiri lofted a long ball from a set-piece into the penalty area, onto the head of Widmer. The Mainz captain directed the ball across goal to Dominik Kohr who made no mistake in placing his powerful diving header into the Leverkusen net, kissing the bottom of the crossbar on its way (7'). Mainz were having a real go, being super physical and showing excellent workrate. Leverkusen did still dominate possession of the ball but were kept largely at bay by the compact Mainz backline. In the 16th minute following a freekick, Caci let rip a rasping drive from range that Hradecky spilled at first before recovering just in time to deny any lurking 05’ers a rebound. Then a counter attack immediately afterwards saw Frimpong slide in Hofmann with the 31-year-old opting to try and squeeze his shot in from a tight angle but Zentner made himself big to make the save (16’). A period of significant pressure from the hosts eventually led to Wirtz laying off the ball to Xhaka on the edge of the box - the Switzerland captain once again hit his attempt first time, but despite the power, he wasn’t able to direct it enough either side of Zentner. The goalkeeper could only palm it, before scrambling to stop Frimpong reaching it, drawing a foul from the Dutchman in the process (19’). The action was relentless with Andrich floating in a great pass for Frimpong but the most prolific right back in the top 5 leagues completely fluffed his volley - not that it mattered in the end with the offside flag raised (22’). At the other end, Nadiem Amiri drove forwards from midfield before letting go a left footed shot that cleared the crossbar by a distance, not troubling Hradecky one bit (23’).
Amiri would then count on his rediscovered set-piece prowess once again, delivering in an enticing corner, once again onto other ex-Leverkusener Dominik Kohr, but this time his header was straight down Hradecky’s throat (28’). On the counterattack, Hofmann had a crack from just outside the box but his shot was well blocked (29’). Leverkusen tasted blood and were now pressing in numbers, harder than ever, to the extent that Florian Wirtz was even limping as a result of his efforts. Their endeavours were almost rewarded when, as a result of pressure from Adli, Zentner gave the ball away to Hofmann, who, rather than going for goal, tried to make a pass but enough Mainz defenders were back to intercept (35’). It was mistakes galore from the carnival club as this time Sepp van den Berg let a back pass run past him, seemingly unaware of Hofmann right behind him.The Germany international snatched at the opportunity however from the right side of the six yard area and Zentner reacted well and sent the ball behind for a corner (40’). From that corner, it is played short to Grimaldo who tries to score from an improbable angle from the right side of the pitch. It very nearly curls in with Zentner diving to prevent it going in the top left corner (41’). Shortly afterwards, Xhaka put in an aerial pass to Wirtz in the box but his header flashes just wide of the post (42’). Onisiwo was booked for taking down Frimpong as he raced towards goal, tackling from behind (42’). It was in a perfect position for Grimaldo - and the Mainz players knew it, with one even moving to position himself under the crossbar (something that one would normally only see in EAFC). It was another incredible freekick from the Spaniard, with the ball heading towards the top right corner but Zentner did well to scoop it over (43’). The first half would end in a bad mood as Frimpong was booked for seething at the referee following an apparent trip by Mwene that didn’t result in a foul. Alonso also saw yellow for his protestations on the sideline (45+1’). The first half statistics reflected a very dominant game as usual from the hosts. 1.04xG compared to Mainz’s 0.43, 13 shots (6 on target) to 6 shots (4 on target) as well as 62% possession for Leverkusen. There also had to be something said for the quality of the chances missed - another day it could have been 3-1 at least. That being said, Mainz were playing valiantly and deserved a draw for their contribution to the game up to half time.
The second half would continue the theme of the first - non-stop, breathless action. In the 48th minute, Onisiwo crossed to Mwene but his header went just wide of the right post. A minute later, the Austrian was involved again as Tah grabbed his boot whilst running, resulting in a yellow card (49’). The resulting free kick proved extremely dangerous - Amiri’s delivery reached the stretching Barreiro - his shot from a tight angle beat Hradecky but luckily deflected off Tah, back into Hradecky’s grateful gloves (50’). The referee was forced to reach for another yellow card when Dominik Kohr professionally fouled Adli to stop him on the counter then delayed the restart (53’). That was the 83rd card for the 30-year-old in his career. On the attack, Wirtz received the ball in the box, cut inside with great footwork, but his shot was deflected over by the outstretched leg of Barreiro (53’). Zentner was then booked for time wasting in the following goal kick (54’). Mainz’s errors at the back somewhat marred what was otherwise a solid defensive display in the first half, but this time it was the turn of Leverkusen to embarrass themselves. Edmond Tapsoba, usually reliable with the ball at his feet, played a wayward pass across the penalty area which was intercepted by Lee. The South Korean did not waste any time but his effort sailed over the bar, despite a nearly open goal (55’). Leverkusen did not let that momentary lapse in concentration faze them, continuing to pin Mainz back in their own half. In the 62nd minute, Grimaldo’s corner from the left found Amine Adli at the near post but the young Moroccan’s header went across the face of goal and wide. A couple of minutes later, Wirtz made his latest attempt to break his 2024 goal drought as he beat Kohr before drilling a low shot just wide of the left post from the left side of the box (64’).
Whilst the game obviously meant so much for both teams given what was at stake, nobody could have expected it to be so fiery. Anthony Caci was next to be disciplined for a late sliding tackle from behind on Frimpong (66’). What was certainly surprising was what happened next. Wirtz passed to Andrich in plenty of space and from over 30 yards out, blasted a bullet of a shot towards goal. Zentner neither parried or caught the ball, instead fumbling it into his own net, unable to claw it away as he fell backwards into the goal (68’). The shot had just a 2% chance of going in, and just as interestingly, it meant that all of the goals scored in the match were by players who had not scored before in this league season. Andrich also became Bayer Leverkusen’s 16th different goalscorer in the Bundesliga, overtaking Bayern in the process. It was an ugly (yet wonderful) goal for an ugly game, and it would get even uglier. First Wirtz was booked for arguing with referee Timo Gerach (74’), then substitute Ngankam was shown a straight red (following a VAR review) for a horrific foul on Xhaka for which he immediately apologised (78’). The young striker had planted his foot on the back of Xhaka’s ankle but fortunately the ever-present Swiss was able to continue. The Werkself seized on the man advantage by passing around for fun, tiring out Mainz who now had to sit back and hope for a chance on the counter attack. The 9th card of the match, a game the referee had clearly lost control of, was shown to Mwene for tugging on Tapsoba in his charge forward (85’). It was do or die for Mainz at this point. In the 94th minute, they received a free kick on the halfway line, for which they sent every available player forwards for, including Zentner. The ball eventually fell to the feet of Tom Krauss who fired well over. Then in the final kick of the game, Jae Sung Lee hits well above the crossbar to confirm the result. 2-1 to Bayer Leverkusen in what was yet another hard-fought encounter with Mainz.
The win marked the 33rd match in Leverkusen’s unforgettable unbeaten run, surpassing the record set by Hansi Flick’s Bayern in 2020. It also extended the lead over the Bavarians to a whopping 11 points, piling on the pressure ahead of their clash later with Leipzig. Not only that, it also took Leverkusen past the fabled 60 point mark, the usual amount of points needed for Champions League qualification in the Bundesliga - in just the 23rd matchday! Yesterday also revealed the opponent Bayer 04 would face in the last 16 of the Europa League. Unfortunately for travelling fans, it is once again Qarabag from Azerbaijan, a team which was bested twice by Leverkusen however in the group stage - 5-1 and 1-0. In sporting terms at least, there could not have been a better draw. Up next for the Werkself is an away game next Sunday away to the goats from Cologne. Before then, all eyes on the Allianz Arena where, with an even more skeletal squad than usual this season, and in their worst form in 9 years, Bayern face the difficult task of RB Leipzig (a team that thrashed them 3-0 in the Supercup last August)...
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