Matchday 15 - 3:0 against Frankfurt: Leverkusen Christmas champions
Bayer Leverkusen are early Christmas champions in the Bundesliga after another impressive win against new favorites Eintracht Frankfurt.
The 3:0 (1:0) win was the Werkself's tenth successive home victory over the Hessians in all competitions, scoring 35:5 goals, and they can no longer be caught on the final matchday of the year during the week. Victor Boniface (14th), Jeremie Frimpong (51st) and Florian Wirtz (57th) scored the goals for the 21st win in the 24th competitive game without defeat.
However, this first unofficial mini-title is only the beginning for coach Xabi Alonso's record-breaking team. Bayer are not only top of the Bundesliga table, but are also one of three Bundesliga clubs in the quarter-finals and clear favorites in the DFB Cup. In addition, Leverkusen are the only club to have won all their matches in the preliminary round and are also among the title contenders in the Europa League.
At the end of the penultimate matchday of the first half of the season, Leverkusen will host relegation candidates VfL Bochum - who have been very stable of late - on Wednesday and can make the first-round championship perfect. Eighth-placed Frankfurt await Borussia Mönchengladbach at the end of the season after ups and downs such as the cup defeat in Saarbrücken and the 5:1 against FC Bayern in the space of four days.
Eintracht on the offensive early
Even without the suspended goalscorer Omar Marmoush, Eintracht surprised everyone by being the first team this season to go on the offensive in Leverkusen from the very first second. The Hessians put the Werkself under pressure early on, pressed well and played quickly forward. However, the surprise tactics did not lead to the opening goal - and then Bayer took their first chance coldly. Frankfurt goalkeeper Kevin Trapp also played his part, as the ball slipped under his upper body from Boniface's 14-metre shot. While Alonso celebrated the goal exuberantly, Toppmöller accepted it almost motionlessly.
From then on, the game took the expected course. Leverkusen controlled the ball and the game, Frankfurt visibly wanted to remain courageous, but were too busy closing down spaces to be able to develop as desired. However, Bayer only had one notable chance to score before the break, when specialist Alejandro Grimaldo struck the crossbar with a free-kick from 22 meters (35'). However, the fact that the Leverkusen side are by no means defined solely by their playmaking ability was demonstrated by the fact that they only committed one foul in the entire first half and still won almost 60 percent of the tackles.
After the break, the league leaders quickly became determined. This time, Trapp held a shot from Boniface from a similar position, but deflected it to the side and winger Frimpong took advantage of the rebound to score his fifth goal of the season. Frankfurt now moved further forward and Bayer gained space. Boniface also made it 3:0, Wirtz lobbing the ball over Trapp, who had no chance this time. Wirtz (81) and Piero Hincapie (84) hit the post. In stoppage time, the hosts were rightly awarded a penalty after video evidence.
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Source: www.stern.de
