Hi, I’m William Munt and today I will be taking you through the top of the table Bundesliga clash between Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich at the BayArena. The hosts are looking to continue their fine form and make further steps towards their first league title, whilst Bayern Munich and their talisman Harry Kane will aim to spoil the host’s party.
There is a slight delay to today’s proceedings, due to a protest from the home fans with sweets and tennis balls being thrown onto the pitch. The home fans are reportedly unhappy with the club’s controversial decision to sell their media rights.
Embed from Getty ImagesKICK OFF: The referee has given the green light and we are underway in this hugely important game between the top team teams in Germany’s premier division.
4′ Bayern Munich advance through Jamal Musiala, but he is tackled on the edge of the box and Bayer Leverkusen are able to clear. The game is yet to explode into life with Bayern Munich controlling most of the ball in the early stages.
Bayern continue to control the ball with Dayot Upamecano and Eric Dier getting plenty of early touches at the back.
8′ Leverkusen force Dier into a hurried clearance out of nowhere, as a risky pass and poor touch allow Florian Wirtz to put the England defender under pressure.
10′ Sacha Boey attempts to feed the ball into the back down Bayern’s left-hand flank, but sees his cross blocked. The crowd are starting to liven up and the atmosphere is building nicely.
11′ Leverkusen almost catch the visitors on the break, with Nathan Tella feeding Amine Adli, whose left footed shot is comfortably gathered by Bayern’s veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
12′ Leon Goretzka ballons Bayern’s first attempt of the game over the bar, after being fed on the edge of the Leverkusen penalty area by Harry Kane.
Embed from Getty ImagesNothing for this man to really sink his teeth into yet, as despite his side’s early dominance of the ball, both sides have only been able to muster one shot apiece so far.
17′ Manuel Neuer is called into action once again, as Wirtz feeds Adli, but the Moroccan fails to really sort out his feet and flicks the ball too close to the goalkeeper.
18′ GOAL! The hosts take the lead at the BayArena and the home fans are going wild. Robert Andrich does well down the Leverkusen left and fires the ball across the face of goal, where the Bayern loanee Josip Stanisic is arriving to slot the ball right-footed into a gaping goal.
Wow! That could be a huge goal in the context of the Bundesliga title race – Leverkusen are currently heading five points clear at the top of the table. What will Bayern’s response be?
22′ Good save! All of a sudden it’s all Leverkusen, as a long diagonal ball finds Tella, who sees his volley blocked by Neuer, before Wirtz’s follow up is blocked behind from a corner.
Neuer is then forced into action once again rom the resulting corner, with the German rising high to tip Alex Grimaldo’s header over the bar for another corner.
24′ The offside flag goes up to give the visitors some breathing space. After a quiet start the game, Stanisic’s goal has seen it burst into life and seen Leverkusen grow into the game.
Embed from Getty Images27′ Bayern are starting to regain some control, with Leroy Sane threatening to escape down the Bayern right. However, the German loses the ball and then gives away a foul for good measure, handing the ball back to Leverkusen and causing the little momentum that Bayern had gained to evaporate.
Embed from Getty ImagesWhere do you stand on players celebrating when they score against their former club? Stanisic certainly kept a lid on his celebrations, but surely the Leverkusen fans would want him to celebrate scoring such an important goal in the context of the title race.
33′ There is a momentary pause in the game, as Granit Xhaka receives some medical attention. The cameras have just cut to Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel giving some animated instructions to Goretzka on the touchline. Having dominated the ball prior to Leverkusen’s goal, Tuchel’s side have been unable to re-establish their grip on the game.
35′ Yellow card – On his first Bayern start, Sacha Boey goes into the book for a late challenge on Andrich, with Leverkusen earning a free-kick in a decent position midway inside the Bayern half.
Embed from Getty ImagesThis man will be walking on eggshells for the rest of the game following his yellow card. Bayern surely cannot afford to go down to ten players in such an important game, especially considering their struggles in this first-half with their full compliment of players.
40′ Leverkusen’s young Ecuadorian left-back Piero Hincapie fires over from outside the Bayern box. He struck the ball well enough, but his effort always appeared to be rising over the bar.
41′ Leverkusen are in behind the Bayern defence, as Upamecano misreads a pass and Adli steals in behind him. However, the French defender more than atones for his error and manages to prod the ball away from Adli, who was bearing down upon the Bayern goal.
43′ Bayern fashion their first real attempt for a while, as Sane steals in behind the Leverkusen back line. The German sets himself, but is unable to bring the ball fully under control and can only lift the ball over the bar for a goal kick.
Embed from Getty ImagesAs the game enters into two minutes of added time at the end of the first half, what will this man be planning to say to his team during the interval? A five point deficit to a team who are yet to lose in the league this season would be a significant gap, so Tuchel will undoubtedly need to rally his troops into decisive action in the second half.
HALF TIME: Bayer Leverkusen take a deserved lead into the break following Stanisic’s first goal for the league leaders. Plenty to ponder for Bayer during the interval, as they look to come from behind and prevent Leverkusen from extending both their unbeaten run and lead at the top of the Bundesliga.
Surely a key factor in Bayern’s struggles was the anonymity of this man. Harry Kane has been Bayern’s talisman so far this season and his struggles in the first-half were reflected in the performance as a whole of the reigning champions.
KICK OFF: Welcome back to the BayArena for the second half, where Leverkusen are currently extending their lead at the top of the Bundesliga to five points, unless Bayern can turn the tables in this second half.
49′ GOAL! That did not take long and Bayern’s task has just become even harder, as Alex Grimaldo doubles Leverkusen’s lead four minutes into the second half. Following a neat give and go with Nathan Tella, Grimaldo advances into the Bayern penalty area and fires a left-footed shot into the roof of the net, beating Neuer at his near post. Leverkusen are now sitting pretty and look set to extend their lead at the top of the table, but the herculean task that Bayern were already facing has just got tougher.
53′ Leverkusen are threatening to run away with this now, as a fresh attack sparks a mini game of pinball in the Bayern box, with an attempted clearance striking Goretzka and gratefully being claimed by Neuer. There was a brief check for handball against Goretzka, but the game is back underway and the check was swiftly completed.
55′ Bayern earn themselves a corner, but fail to fully capitalise upon it, before Goretzka mistimes a header and sends the ball comfortably into the gloves of Lukas Hradecky from the second phase of the attack.
STAT ATTACK: No one in the Bundesliga has scored more goals with their left-foot this season than Grimaldo.
57′ Tuchel appears to be preparing the first substitutions of the game for Bayern Munich, as his side desperately attempt to get back into the game. However, as Bayern are forced to open up and commit more players forward, will Leverkusen be able to capitalise on the counter attack?
59′ Substitutions: Joshua Kimmich and Thomas Muller are the Bayern Munich changes, replacing Upamecano and Aleksandar Pavlovic
Embed from Getty ImagesWill Leverkusen’s joy last long into the German night or will Bayern be able to muster a stunning comeback, inflicting a first defeat of the season upon the hosts?
61′ Yellow card – Leon Goretzka is the second Bayern player into the back, as he knocks Adli to the ground just inside the Leverkusen half and is deemed to have stopped a promising counter attack by Felix Zwayer.
63′ HITS THE BAR! Almost a stunning second for Grimaldo – the Spaniard goes straight for goal from a corner, showcasing the confidence flowing through the veins of the Leverkusen players, but his dipping effort deflects back into play off the intersection between the post and bar.
64′ Yellow card – Edmond Tapsoba is the first Leverkusen player into Zwayer’s notebook, with the Burkinabe being penalised for stopping Bayern breaking away down their left-hand flank.
65′ Substitution: Tella breaks in behind the Bayern defence and sees a weak shot trickle past the Bayern upright. That is Tella’s last contribution to the game, as he is replaced by Jeremie Frimpong in Xabi Alonso’s first alteration of the afternoon.
Embed from Getty ImagesTapsoba will be keen to toe the line, as his side appear to be completely comfortable and a red card for Leverkusen may be the only possible route back into the game for Bayern.
Despite Bayern being the side in need of the goals, Leverkusen continue to look the most threatening. In the past 20 minutes, Leverkusen have managed to muster three shots compared to none for a Bayern side, who must be growing increasingly frustrated and wondering whether it is just one of those days.
71′ Substitution: Mathys Tel is the latest player turned to by Tuchel from the bench, as Bayern search for that bit of magic to get back into the game. Leon Goretzka, who was walking a tightrope on a yellow card, is the man replaced.
72′ Leverkusen fashion another chance as Xhaka slips in the substitute Jeremie Frimpong down the right-hand side. The former Celtic man works a yard of space, but his effort squeezes harmlessly across the face of goal and out of play.
74′ The first real sign of the frustration starting to bubble over for Bayern appears in the form of Sane needlessly bundling Andrich over on the half-way line. Sane is very lucky to escape a yellow card, as it was a cynical foul with Andrich going nowhere, however – his frustration is understandable given the dominance of Leverkusen in this second half.
76′ Yellow card – Amine Adli is the latest player into the book for Leverkusen, with the Moroccan being guilty of the stereotypical ‘striker’s tackle’, as he catches Kim Min-jae late and picks up a yellow card.
Embed from Getty ImagesAs the game enters into the final ten minutes, Bayern will be desperately looking for a spark of magic from anywhere, with the frustrated Sane being one of the players they regularly look to in their time of need. However, as the seconds continue to tick away, it looks increasingly likely that Leverkusen’s dominant season will continue.
80′ Substitutions: Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Raphael Guerreiro replaced Musiala and Boey for Bayern Munich, before Jonas Hofmann replaces Adli for Leverkusen.
82′ Yellow card – Lukas Hradecky falls foul of the German referee and receives a yellow card for time wasting.
Bayern’s desperation is yet to produce many meaningful chances in this second half, however the visitors have managed to force a corner. From the corner, Kimmich sees a curling effort swatted away by Hradecky, but the flag goes up with Muller standing in an offside position and in the eyeline of Hradecky.
Embed from Getty ImagesBoth sides continue to battle hard with the game entering into the final five minutes, but Bayern still lack impetus going forward and Leverkusen simply seem to have been too strong for them.
87′ HITS THE POST – Leverkusen are looking dangerous on the counter attack and Frimpong almost makes it three to cap off an excellent night’s work for the hosts. Stanisic was able to burst unchallenged into the Bayern penalty area and fed Frimpong, but his effort was deflected onto the upright and behind for a corner. Frimpong then sees another shot from the angle blocked by the legs of Neuer, but the flag was up for oggside.
89′ Substitutions – Alex Grimaldo and Florian Wirtz walk off to raucous ovations from the home crowd, as they are replaced by Gustavo Puerta and Adam Hlozek.
90′ As the game enters into five minutes of additional time, Bayern seem to know that the game is out and Leverkusen will be extending their lead at the top of the Bundesliga to five points.
95′ GOAL! What a way to finish the game! Jeremie Frimpong completes a statement victory for Leverkusen with a stunning finish from midway through the Bayern half. He picked the ball up just inside the Leverkusen half, forged a yard of space and curled an impressive effort into a gaping net, with Neuer having gone up for the Bayern corner and left his goal exposed.
FULL TIME: Bayern Leverkusen go five points clear at the top of the Bundesliga and extend their unbeaten run to 31 games in all competitions.
What a game! Thank you for joining me this evening and watching Bayer Leverkusen strengthen their position in the Bundesliga. Unfortunately, it’s time for us to finish here and perhaps like Bayern’s title chances tonight, it’s goodbye from me.
