German champion Bayer Leverkusen lost a Bundesliga match for the first time in 15 months when Loïs Openda scored twice in a 3-2 comeback win for Leipzig on Saturday.
Under coach Xabi Alonso, Leverkusen has become known for scoring late goals. It briefly looked like this might happen again when the referee reviewed a possible penalty in the 86th minute after Leipzig’s Castello Lukeba and Leverkusen’s Patrik Schick made contact.
The referee decided not to award the penalty, and Leverkusen lost to a German team for the first time since May 2023 after 35 Bundesliga games unbeaten, including their entire title-winning 2023-24 season.
“It’s hard, it’s bitter,” Alonso told German broadcaster Sky. “I don’t think we deserved to lose today.”
Leipzig came back from 2-0 down by taking advantage of their few chances, mostly on the counterattack, to secure the win. Leipzig scored three goals from just 10 shots, while Leverkusen had 27 shots.
Leverkusen scored twice in a six-minute span during the first half. Jeremie Frimpong intercepted a loose pass, sent defender El Chadaille Bitshiabu the wrong way, and beat goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi.
Alex Grimaldo then finished off a team move that involved new signing Martin Terrier drawing Gulacsi out of position.
Despite this, Leipzig gained momentum at halftime after Kevin Kampl’s added-time header. Openda turned the game around with two accurate shots. He equalized with a shot from a tight angle near the sideline and then made it 3-2 with a curling shot from outside the box.
“Leipzig’s goal (from Kampl) before the break was something that changed (the game),” Alonso said. “We were prepared to play well and keep going in the second half, but we didn’t have too much control, the game was too open and we conceded two goals too simply.”
