Pragmatic Bayern Munich survive on a hook against a "perfect" Bayer Leverkusen performance
- Anweshan Ghosh
- Feb 18
- 2 min read
Bayern Munich were held to a 1-1 draw away from home by Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen in a crucial match in the title race as the defending Bundesliga champions aim to close down the gap between them and the league leaders.
Leverkusen appeared to be at their best, playing a beautiful brand of football against their title rivals Bayern, who currently stand 8 points ahead in the Bundesliga points table.
The hosts had the golden opportunity to close down the gap between them and Bayern to just five points by winning the game.
Xabi Alonso’s side were unlucky to not take away all three points against a “poor” Bayern Munich side, with the hosts hitting the woodwork twice, leading to a narrow escape for the struggling Bavarian giants.
The home side accumulated an xG (expected goals) of 2.16, in comparison to the visitor's 0.05, indicating their dominant yet wasteful performance.
Bayern did not offer much offensively and had a total of only two shots in the entire game, while failing to register even a single shot on target.
Xabi Alonso hails his team's performance against Bayern
Xabi Alonso marked his team's performance as an “excellent one” but also expressed his disappointment at not getting all three points.
Speaking in the post-match press conference, Xabi Alonso said, "We have the feeling that we played a fantastic game. The way we have played is our best game against Bayern this year, even last year."
He further added, "We have done almost everything right, but we missed the goal. We created enough chances. A fantastic performance. The other part is the result, with which we are not that happy. But that's football.”
Can Bayer Leverkusen defend their Bundesliga title?
Bayer Leverkusen are currently second in the table with 47 points. Despite having lost just one game this season, they are still eight points behind the league leaders, Bayern Munich.
Xabi Alonso's side seemed to have dropped their intensity in comparison to last season, which has led to them dropping points in crucial games.
However, Leverkusen’s performance against Bayern will give them a lot of confidence going forward this season in an attempt to try and defend their title, with 14 games still left to be played.
They might be able to defend their crown, given the unpredictable nature of the Bundesliga.
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