Bayer Leverkusen only 2-2 against Holstein Kiel

If the Leverkusen team could be blamed, it would be that they mysteriously collapsed shortly before the break. The master was initially in control of events from the start. The newcomer, on the other hand, was content to chase the ball almost all the time.

After just four minutes, the ball landed via Exequiel Palacios to Boniface, who made it 1-0 from a tight angle. On his 26th birthday, the Argentine world champion also scored the second goal when he saw Hofmann on the right side, who shot low into the far corner. Leverkusen had 13 shots in the first half – more than any other team this season.

But just before the break, Bayer suddenly gave up. Shuto Machino first had a good shooting opportunity (45th + 3). And then the ball suddenly found itself in the Leverkusen goal when Geschwill pushed the ball with his shoulder after a corner. Exactly what Alonso warned happened. This is another reason why the Basque quickly entered the cabin with a serious expression.

But what he said to his team during the break didn’t have the desired effect. Kiel now acted with much more defensive confidence and awaited a counterattack. And the guests annoyed the reigning champions even more. After a foul by Jérémie Frimpong, there was a penalty, which substitute Arp safely converted. Leverkusen then pushed for a late victory – but without success.

Lukas Hradecky struggled to stop after the match and the Leverkusen captain sounded the alarm. The goalkeeper complained that there was no trace of the mentality that took his team to the double last season: “We were champions because we approached every game like crazy. Today, I didn’t see an inexhaustible desire to kill the game.” Instead, “metaphorically speaking, we let the patient live,” Hradecky explained. He saw neither “zeal nor courage”; the Kiel team “deserved this point, quite honestly”.