Bayer Leverkusen’s 35-game unbeaten Bundesliga run came to an end at home on Saturday, as visiting RB Leipzig came from two goals down to snatch a 3-2 win.
Loïs Openda’s double helped Leipzig become the first team to beat Leverkusen in the Bundesliga for 462 days, since VfL Bochum beat them 3-0 on the last day of the 2022-23 season. Marco Rose’s side have won their first two games, are unbeaten in 13 league matches, and showed their own title credentials with victory at the BayArena.
Leipzig had to survive a late penalty appeal, as the referee decided Castello Lukeba’s challenge on Patrik Schick did not merit a spot-kick after consulting with VAR. Xabi Alonso’s side were one result away from matching Hamburg’s tally of 36 games unbeaten in 1982-83. That is the second-longest run in history after Bayern Munich’s record 53 games under Pep Guardiola from 2012 to 2014.
Leverkusen dominated from the start and Jérémie Frimpong opened the scoring in the 38th minute with a low strike from Jonathan Tah’s long pass. The defending champions looked to be in total control when Álejandro Grimaldo doubled the lead just before the break, and Victor Boniface could have made it 3-0 in stoppage time.
Instead, Kevin Kampl scored with a diving header to cut the deficit to one goal, and Leipzig were level just before the hour mark. Openda collecting Benjamin Sesko’s pass and fired home an unstoppable shot from distance which gave Leverkusen keeper Matej Kovar no chance.
The Belgian forward then gave Leipzig the lead with 10 minutes to play, nutmegging Edmond Tapsoba to find the net again. Leverkusen have been masters of finding late goals during their long unbeaten run but this time they could not rescue things, with Schick’s unsuccessful penalty appeal the closest they came.
Earlier on Saturday, Borussia Dortmund were held to a 0-0 draw at Werder Bremen, with centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck sent off in the second half. Stuttgart were frustrated at home by Mainz as Maxim Leitsch’s injury-time effort cancelled out Fabian Rieder’s late strike to earn the visitors a point in a wild 3-3 draw.
Hugo Ekitike and Omar Marmoush were on target for Eintracht Frankfurt as they beat Hoffenheim 3-1, while Ralph Hassenhüttl’s Wolfsburg won 2-0 at promoted Holstein Kiel. Borussia Mönchengladbach won by the same scoreline at Bochum, with Tim Kleindienst and Franck Honorat on target in the second half.
