Grimaldo and Wirtz are Alonso's saviours as Leverkusen keep the summit on a thrilling day in Sinsheim
Reading Time: 3min | Sat. 04.11.23. | 19:33
Hoffenheim came back from two goals down, but Bundesliga leaders won 3-2
Bayer Leverkusen is so fun to watch that we can't keep our gaze away! The team managed by former Real Madrid and Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso is marching ahead of Bayern and Leipzig and won't leave the top of the standings.
On Saturday evening, they managed to grind out a win that looked almost lost. Despite racing into a 2-0 lead in the first half, two second-half strikes in space of minutes for the host made it 2-2 at the PreZero Arena in Sinsheim. But Spanish left-back Alex Grimaldo restored the lead and gave Alonso another three points from a tricky trip.
Throughout the first half, Xabi Alonso's team controlled the game's tempo. Hoffenheim's best chance came in the form of a Robert Skov shot that went well over the crossbar at the half-hour mark. Leverkusen then doubled their lead just before halftime with a simple yet effective corner routine. Jonas Hofmann played the ball along the ground to Grimaldo, who calmly side-footed it into the top corner with his first touch.
The hosts were determined not to lose their scoring record in every league game this season and started the second half well. Maximilian Beier tested Leverkusen's goalkeeper, Hradecky, at his near post, and despite a couple of challenges, he almost put in the rebound, but it went just wide. A few minutes later, Hoffenheim maintained their scoring record when Anton Stach intercepted Hradecky's clearance and sent a long-range shot over the backtracking goalkeeper and into the net.
The comeback was complete two minutes later when Beier attempted a long-range shot that hit the post and rebounded perfectly to former Manchester United flop Wout Weghorst, who tapped it in. The Dutchman had a chance to give his team the lead in the 64th minute, but his free header from Ozan Kabak's cross went just over the bar. On the other side, Boniface nearly repeated his earlier feat as he found himself free in Hoffenheim's box but mistimed his header. However, he kept the ball in play and passed it back to Grimaldo, who was waiting at the edge of the box. Similar to his first goal, Grimaldo curled the ball into the net to regain the lead for Bayer.
This goal restored Leverkusen's control over the game, and they were able to see it out, ensuring they would lead the Bundesliga standings, regardless of the result of the match between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. It marks a second consecutive home defeat for Hoffenheim, who remain in European competition positions.
Elsewhere, RB Leipzig suffered their second loss of the week. After crashing out of the DFB-Pokal with a defeat in Wolfsburg, Marco Rose's team fell to a 2-0 defeat at never-say-die Mainz.
BUNDESLIGA - MATCHDAY 10
Friday
Darmstadt - Bochum 1-2 (1-1)
/Nurnberger 42 - Asano 25, 54/
Saturday
Hoffenheim - Bayer Leverkusen 2-3 (0-2)
/Stach 56, Weghorst 58 - Wirtz 9, Grimaldo 45+1, 70/
Koln - Augsburg 1-1 (1-1)
/Maina 16 - Tietz 25/
Freiburg - Borussia Monchengladbach 3-3 (1-3)
/Holer 7, Weisshaupt 71, Grifo 90+4 pen - Siebatcheu 25, Plea 29, Weigl 39 pen/
Mainz - RB Leipzig 2-0 (0-0)
/Lee 76, Barreiro 82/
Union Berlin - Eintracht Frankfurt 0-3 (0-2)
/Marmoush 2, 14, Nacho 82/
20:30: (4.20) Dortmund (3.90) Bayern (1.80)
Sunday
17:30: (1.72) Wolfsburg (3.80) Werder (4.80)
19:30: (5.00) Heidenheim (3.90) Stuttgart (1.68)
***odds are subject to change***
