By Rich M.
A fourth season goal from Bayern’s Harry Kane was not enough to keep visitors Bayern Leverkusen from picking up a late draw on Friday. Kane’s goal was the first of the match, and came in just the seventh minute. The visitors tied the match in the 24th minute, when Alejandro Grimaldo converted a direct free kick from 25 yards out. Bayern finally took the lead again in the 86th minute, thanks to a goal from Leon Goretzka, but Leverkusen’s Exequiel Palacios converted a penalty kick in the 4th minute of extra time. The draw keeps Leverkusen at the top of the table for the weekend, given their superior goal differential over Bayern. Competition for those spots below Leverkusen and Bayern resumes on Saturday when Leipzig hosts Augsburg, Hoffenheim travels to Köln, Freiburg hosts Dortmund, and Stuttgart travels to Mainz. Freiburg started the campaign with wins over Hoffenheim and Bremen, but were blown out by Stuttgart prior to the international break. Their opponents this weekend, Dortmund, are a point behind them, and 4 points behind Leverkusen and Bayern. Dortmund mayhave to play without summer signing Niclas Füllkrug, who is suffering from a minor muscle complaint. While Freiburg coach Christian Streich has suffered more defeats to Dortmund than to any other Bundesliga club he has faced, Dortmund are currently on their worst start to a league campaign in 14 years. Leipzig is currently enjoying a promising opening from 20-year-old Dutch playmaker Xavi Simons. Not only did Simons send the club on its way to a 3:0 victory over Union Berlin with a stunning drive into the corner from the edge of the box back on Matchday 3, but he is also holding on to an accuracy rate of 91 percent in hitting 22 passes. A win against Augsburg on Saturday would make it 3 in a row for Leipzig. Stuttgart is in fourth place going into Saturday’s contests, and the club features the league’s best marksman of the campaign in Serhou Guirassy. The Guinea international made his debut for the club in September 2022, and has since scored 16 times. The last time Stuttgart and Mainz met, Stuttgart came from behind to win 4:1. The Swabians have since won 6 of their last 9 competitive games. Mainz, conversely, have gone 8 league matches without a win, although that win came on April 15th against Bayern. On Sunday, finally, 3 of the 4 clubs at the bottom of the table will compete, and the match between hosts Darmstadt and visitors Gladbach will be an especially important one for both sides.
A fourth season goal from Bayern’s Harry Kane was not enough to keep visitors Bayern Leverkusen from picking up a late draw on Friday. Kane’s goal was the first of the match, and came in just the seventh minute. The visitors tied the match in the 24th minute, when Alejandro Grimaldo converted a direct free kick from 25 yards out. Bayern finally took the lead again in the 86th minute, thanks to a goal from Leon Goretzka, but Leverkusen’s Exequiel Palacios converted a penalty kick in the 4th minute of extra time. The draw keeps Leverkusen at the top of the table for the weekend, given their superior goal differential over Bayern. Competition for those spots below Leverkusen and Bayern resumes on Saturday when Leipzig hosts Augsburg, Hoffenheim travels to Köln, Freiburg hosts Dortmund, and Stuttgart travels to Mainz. Freiburg started the campaign with wins over Hoffenheim and Bremen, but were blown out by Stuttgart prior to the international break. Their opponents this weekend, Dortmund, are a point behind them, and 4 points behind Leverkusen and Bayern. Dortmund mayhave to play without summer signing Niclas Füllkrug, who is suffering from a minor muscle complaint. While Freiburg coach Christian Streich has suffered more defeats to Dortmund than to any other Bundesliga club he has faced, Dortmund are currently on their worst start to a league campaign in 14 years. Leipzig is currently enjoying a promising opening from 20-year-old Dutch playmaker Xavi Simons. Not only did Simons send the club on its way to a 3:0 victory over Union Berlin with a stunning drive into the corner from the edge of the box back on Matchday 3, but he is also holding on to an accuracy rate of 91 percent in hitting 22 passes. A win against Augsburg on Saturday would make it 3 in a row for Leipzig. Stuttgart is in fourth place going into Saturday’s contests, and the club features the league’s best marksman of the campaign in Serhou Guirassy. The Guinea international made his debut for the club in September 2022, and has since scored 16 times. The last time Stuttgart and Mainz met, Stuttgart came from behind to win 4:1. The Swabians have since won 6 of their last 9 competitive games. Mainz, conversely, have gone 8 league matches without a win, although that win came on April 15th against Bayern. On Sunday, finally, 3 of the 4 clubs at the bottom of the table will compete, and the match between hosts Darmstadt and visitors Gladbach will be an especially important one for both sides.
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