The slip-up by Bundesliga leaders FC Bayern fits perfectly into the year-end concept of the unbeatable away double winner Bayer Leverkusen. “Of course it’s good news and we want to keep going ourselves,” said goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky, who was largely unemployed during the highly efficient 2-0 (2-0) at FC Augsburg, about Munich’s first Bundesliga defeat of the season.
Coach Xabi Alonso’s side, unbeaten in 24 Bundesliga away games, won their seventh competitive game in a row and reduced the gap to the German record champions in the table to just four points. FC Bayern surprisingly lost 1:2 (0:1) in Mainz. This is a “very good signal elsewhere,” said Hradecky. And by “somewhere else” the Finn meant Munich.
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The patient and calm double winner from Leverkusen, who was notorious for his last-minute goals last season, has already scored seven times in the opening quarter of an hour this season. In the home game next Saturday against SC Freiburg, Bayer can move even closer to FC Bayern at the end of the year. “The table in December doesn’t mean too much to me,” said Xabi Alonso.
Terrier and Wirtz ensure clear conditions
The Augsburgers are challenged in their last game of 2024 against newly promoted Kiel in order not to completely screw up the final spurt. However, they have to do without captain and defense chief Jeffrey Gouweleeuw because of his fifth yellow card.
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Martin Terrier in the 14th minute and national player Florian Wirtz (40th) robbed the Augsburg fans of hope of a surprise against the confident Champions League starter in front of 29,310 spectators at half time. “We deserved to lose against a very strong opponent,” admitted Augsburg coach Jess Thorup.
Xhaka initiates the lead
Xabi Alonso’s team exerted immense control over the game. Almost 75 percent of ball possession in the first half was an expression of Leverkusen’s dominance.
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Midfielder Granit The nimble Dutchman evaded Dimitrios Giannoulis on the right side, and his low pass was then converted by the slightly faster Terrier in front of Chrislain Matsima.
The goal music is already playing for Augsburg
It was initially the guests’ most dangerous scene. Augsburg then became a little more courageous – and even supposedly scored through defender Keven Schlotterbeck. The stadium announcer even played the goal music in the 23rd minute, but the referee rightly ruled it offside after Marius Wolf’s free kick.
National player Wirtz then demonstrated what effectiveness means. Matsima gave the dribbling artist too much space. After a feint, Wirtz shot from 15 meters and shot through the legs of the French central defender.
Hradecky has little to do
Augsburg tried its luck on the offensive again with the substitutions of Mert Kömür, Alexis Claude-Maurice and Ruben Vargas. However, Leverkusen’s goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky didn’t put them in trouble for a long time.
It wasn’t until stoppage time that Claude-Maurice challenged the Finnish goalkeeper with a shot. Bayer still ended the away game with a high level of pass security and a lot of routine.
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