It was another epic performance from defending champions Borussia Dortmund as they extended their lead at the top of the Bundesliga table to 7 points thanks to a 2-1 home win over Mainz.
The win coupled with Bayern’s shock 2-0 loss to Leverkusen ensured that Jurgen Klopp’s side remain on course to defend their title and make it an 8th Bundesliga title for the Dortmund based club.
Playing in front of a 80,000 crowd at the Westfalenstadion, the home side went up with only 26th minutes on the clock thanks to Jacob Blaszczykowski. Dortmund looked to be heading for a slender 1-0 win until their former striker Mohameed Zidan struck in the 74th minute.
However, Mainz’s joy was short lived as only three minutes later Japanese import Shinji Kagawa scored the winner to take the 80,000 strong crowd into delirium.
Meanwhile Bayern Munich’s title hopes suffered a major blow when they lost 2-0 to Leverkusen thanks to a pair of late goals from Stefan Kiessling and Karim Bellarabi.
The goals did not come through until the 80th minute when Stefan Kiessling made a simple tap in after good work from Derdiyok whose overhead kick sprawled easily across the face of goal to allow Kiessling with the easiest of tap in’s.
Leverkusen were however not finished as Karim Bellarabi scored in the last minute of the game to give Robin Dutt his first win over the Bavarian’s for the first time in six attempts.
Speaking after the match, Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes rued his sides missed chances saying that their failure to convert their opportunities to goals could end up costing them.
“We were outstanding in the first half and had huge chances, which we failed to take,” Heynckes said in an interview with the club’s official website.
“That’s the curse hanging over us at the moment. And not taking your chances can always backfire on you, which is what happened today. It’s a big disappointment to all of us.”
Photo Credit © Catatan Bola Photo Gallery
