LEVERKUSEN, Germany (AP) — Bayern Munich lost 2-0 to Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, its first home loss to “Der Klassiker” in a decade, allowing Bayer Leverkusen, coming off a 2-1 win at Hoffenheim, to take a 13-point lead with seven points remaining.
Leverkusen’s win blamed Bayern in Saturday’s final game, but the German champions lost at home and Dortmund scored goals in part thanks to Munich’s Karim Adeyemi and defender Julian Ryerson.
Harry Kane had the ball in the net in the final minutes to give Bayern hope of a comeback, but the England captain’s goal was disallowed for offside.
Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel said “congratulations to Leverkusen”.
Asked if the name race was over, Tuchel replied “of course”, saying “it’s obvious, of course”.
Bayern defender Joshua Kimmich has been furious and publicly critical of his team.
“I know how you can incorporate functionality like that into a game like this. It’s absolutely incomprehensible,” Kimmich said.
“In the second half we had the feeling that there was nothing at stake, it was like a friendly match. You have to stop by the house and ask yourself. “
Dortmund’s first league win in Munich in 3,641 days, dating back to 2014 when Jurgen Klopp in charge, saw them move three points clear of RB Leipzig and climb to fourth as the Champions League war intensifies.
The win in Munich “took too long,” Dortmund coach Edin Terzic said.
“We were a bit lucky, but we worked hard to get there,” Terzic told Sky.
Earlier on Saturday, Maximilian Beier gave Hoffenheim a 1-0 lead in Leverkusen. But with this season’s unbeaten run in serious jeopardy a day after Xabi Alonso pledged to stay on as manager for a year, league leaders have struck back.
Robert Andrich equalised in the 88th minute before Patrik Schick’s stoppage-time volley sealed a remarkable comeback.
Leverkusen’s overdue win continued their winning record in the final moments of this season.
Alonso’s side beat Augsburg, Leipzig and Stuttgart in the German Cup, and faced Qarabag twice in the Europa League.
“I’ve been optimistic,” Alonso told reporters. We said at half-time that a goal was important. Everything can be replaced in an instant.
“We have a winning mentality, we built it ourselves this season. “
“We kept fighting and believing until the end,” Leverkusen striker Andrich told Sky.
“I had no doubt that today we were going to go through to score at least one goal. I knew one of our shots had to go through. “
Alonso boosts himself
The midfielder, who stood by his coach as the team celebrated in front of home fans after the game, said Alonso told the players on Friday that he would do so beyond the season.
“He said he wasn’t going anywhere, he said he would come here,” Andrich said of Alonso, who has been heavily linked with transfers to Liverpool and Bayern.
“The timing he chose was very good. Now we can keep pushing and achieve something big this season. “
Dortmund’s victory meant RB Leipzig’s bid for a Champions League position took a hit, after the German Cup champions drew goalless at home to lowly Mainz despite dominating possession.
The hosts were denied twice in the first half, with an eighth-minute penalty for handball disallowed by VAR and a Lois Openda goal disallowed for off.
“I don’t hear the expected goals anymore, we just didn’t take our chances,” Leipzig’s David Raum lamented.
RB Leipzig and Dortmund, Champions League regulars for a decade, will meet in the league at the end of April at the Red Bull Arena.
Wolfsburg’s new manager, Ralph Hasenhuttl, the former Southampton manager, won his first game in charge, 2-0 against Werder Bremen.
Bremen were reduced to 10 men just before half-time after a last-man foul by Anthony Jung. Maxence Lacroix gave Wolves the lead soon after.
Lacroix was sent off in the second half, but Wolfsburg’s Lovro Majer scored to seal the win.
Freiburg took a step towards European qualification in veteran coach Christian Streich’s last season at the club with a 3-0 win at Borussia Moenchengladbach.
The Black Forest team faced Gladbach in full swing: Michael Gregoritsch, Merlin Roehl and Ritsu Doan scored.
Union Berlin held Eintracht Frankfurt to a 0-0 draw away from home, picking up a valuable point to move nine points clear of the relegation zone.