Palacios' penalty brace sees Leverkusen beat Bayern
After overcoming their Hungarian opposition on Thursday, Leverkusen prepared themselves for an even greater challenge in Bayern Munich this afternoon.
Coach Xabi Alonso opted for three changes as Kossounou, Demirbay, and Adli replaced Tah, Bakker, and Azmoun.
Meanwhile, Müller and Goretzka replaced Gnabry and Musiala – the latter given a rest by his manager who felt the German star had played a lot of football recently.
In what was a truly end-to-end game sprinked with pivotal VAR twists, Leverkusen secured a 2-1 win. The result means Borussia Dortmund remain a point clear of Bayern at the top of the table with 'Der Klassiker' on the horizon.
Coach Xabi Alonso opted for three changes as Kossounou, Demirbay, and Adli replaced Tah, Bakker, and Azmoun.
Meanwhile, Müller and Goretzka replaced Gnabry and Musiala – the latter given a rest by his manager who felt the German star had played a lot of football recently.
In what was a truly end-to-end game sprinked with pivotal VAR twists, Leverkusen secured a 2-1 win. The result means Borussia Dortmund remain a point clear of Bayern at the top of the table with 'Der Klassiker' on the horizon.
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After an evenly contested opening, Leverkusen started to turn the screw after a quarter of an hour. First, a swift break from Adli found Frimpong who teed up Diaby from range. The subsequent attack was taken on by Frimpong himself, who forced a fine save from Sommer. Nagelsmann visibly frustrated by his side’s failure to defend their left flank.
However, it would be Bayern who took the lead through Joshua Kimmich. The skipper fired through a crowd to hit the net with the aid of a Kossounou deflection. Leon Goretzka with the all-important pass to set up his midfield partner. Although behind on the scoreboard, ‘Die Werkself’ did not shy away from their opposition. Chance creation was aplenty as Demirbay and Diaby tried their best from range.
Musiala and Gnabry were introduced after the interval. There would be drama in store inside 8 minutes of second-half action. Amine Adli was issued a yellow card for supposed simulation. Arbiter, Tobias Stieler, quickly rescinded the booking after some brief VAR consultation and awarded a penalty. Palacios sent Sommer the wrong way to level matters at 1-1.
They say lightning never strikes twice but Amine Adli may feel less inclined to believe that after today’s game. Once again, referee Stieler booked the French attacker for what he deemed was a dive in the box. VAR would have other ideas as officials believed Upamecano felled his compatriot, which resulted in another spot kick. Although Sommer would guess correctly this time, he could not prevent ‘Die Werkself’ from taking a 2-1 lead. As the game neared its end, Hradecky was pivotal in keeping Bayern at bay. An enormous win for Xabi Alonso and Co.
