Bayern Escape Consequences of Shock Loss as Leverkusen Also Stumble

Bayern Munich suffered a surprising defeat but avoided major repercussions as Bayer Leverkusen also fell short in their latest Bundesliga clash.

Bayern Munich, despite being reduced to 10 men, suffered a surprising 3-2 home defeat against Bochum on Saturday. Meanwhile, Bayer Leverkusen’s title aspirations took a hit as they lost 2-0 to Werder Bremen.

Despite the defeat, which marks only Bayern’s second of the season, the Bavarians maintain an eight-point advantage over defending champions Leverkusen with nine games remaining.

Leverkusen’s troubles worsened when star midfielder Florian Wirtz suffered an injury. He limped off the field after enduring a rough challenge, having played only 14 minutes of the second half.

With the upcoming Champions League last 16 return leg against Leverkusen on Tuesday in mind, Bayern coach Vincent Kompany made significant changes to the starting lineup, opting to leave striker Harry Kane on the bench.

In the 14th minute, Bayern midfielder Raphael Guerreiro put his team ahead by smashing a loose ball into the net. Shortly after, Serge Gnabry missed a penalty in the 21st minute.

With Kane, who had successfully converted his previous 30 penalty attempts in a row, sitting on the bench, Gnabry took the shot but struck it against the post.

However, Guerreiro scored again with a rare header at the 28-minute mark, just three minutes before Bochum’s Jakov Medic pulled one back with an unstoppable rocket.

Bochum were given a boost when Bayern’s Joao Palhinha received a red card for striking Giorgos Masouras’ ankle with his studs just before half-time.

Ibrahima Sissoko scored with a header to bring Bochum level six minutes into the second half, and Matus Bero put the underdogs ahead 71 minutes in by covering the length of the field to convert a pass from Philipp Hofmann.

Bochum’s unexpected triumph, marking their first victory in Munich since 1991, moved them three points ahead of the automatic relegation spots.

Bayern’s coach, Vincent Kompany, stated, “We have no excuses — we lost,” and further remarked that “even with 10 men on the field, we should hold at least the expectation to avoid defeat.”

Leverkusen fell behind just seven minutes into the match as Romano Schmid scored with a close-range tap-in.

As Leverkusen struggled to find their rhythm, coach Xabi Alonso decided to bring Wirtz off the bench at halftime. However, just eight minutes later, the Germany midfielder suffered a harsh foul that forced him to limp off the field and eventually leave the arena on crutches.

If Wirtz, the club’s talisman and standout performer this season, were to be injured, it would deal a significant blow to Alonso’s team. This is especially concerning with Tuesday’s Champions League match against Bayern looming; they already lead 3-0 from the first leg.

“We’ll need to wait and find out,” Alonso commented following the match, adding that “we haven’t received any results yet.”

Mitchell Weiser from Bremen, who committed the foul against the German midfielder, apologized after the match. He said, “I hope it’s not too serious — I’m fortunate it wasn’t a red card.”

Borussia Dortmund’s already slim hopes of securing a top-four finish were further damaged by a 1-0 defeat at home to Augsburg. Jeffrey Gouweleeuw scored the sole goal of the match with his first-half header.

Dortmund struggled offensively and showed little resistance against a strong Augsburg team, who have only allowed three goals in league play in 2025 — the best record across Europe.

Dortmund, who were Champions League finalists last season, are currently in 10th place in the league and are seven points away from reaching the top four.

In another match, St Pauli ended their goal drought over five games with a 1-1 draw against Wolfsburg, moving two points clear of the relegation playoff zone.

Another team that was promoted, Holstein Kiel, also earned a point with a challenging 2-2 draw at home against Stuttgart.

Freiburg will host RB Leipzig later on Saturday.