Bundesliga Bulletin: Leverkusen go top, Dortmund dismantled
December 13, 2020
Bundesliga Matchday 11 headlines:
- Leverkusen first, Schalke last
- Bayern held in the capital
- Disaster for Dortmund
- Wolfsburg win thanks to Weghorst
Leverkusen first, Schalke last
In Sunday's action, Schalke and Leverkusen showed just how far apart two teams can be in a league of just 18 teams.
Leverkusen's 3-1 win over nine-man Hoffenheim put them top of the Bundesliga. This looks a special season but it's early, and it's Leverkusen so who knows?
At the other end of the table are Schalke. Having overcome a shocking injury to Mark Uth in the first half that saw the striker stretchered off to hospital, Schalke threw away a 2-1 lead with 30 minutes to go against 10-men Augsburg. In conceding a last-minute equalizer, the club has now gone 27 league games without a win.
Bayern held in the capital
It took 66 minutes for Bayern to equalize against Union Berlin. Were it not for Andreas Luthe they might have done so sooner, perhaps even adding a winner late on, but the point was one the home side deserved. Union pushed a tired Bayern throughoutand had Liverpool loanee Taiwo Awoniyi shown a bit more composure, this might have been a special night for the big city club.
Disaster for Dortmund
Just days after sealing top spot in their Champions League group, Borussia Dortmund were handed a resounding 5-1 defeat by a slick Stuttgart side. Dortmund's errors with the ball were ruthlessly exploited by a newly promoted team that has hit the ground running this season. The loss also proved the final straw for Dortmund's bosses, who relieved Lucien Favre of his duties less than 24 hours later.
Wolfsburg win thanks to Weghorst
For a long time it looked like the teams with the most combined draws in the league were going to share the points, but then Wout Weghorst got involved. The Dutchman equalized from the spot and then sunk Frankfurt with a superb finish placed into the far corner. Wolfsburg are still unbeaten and go to Munich in fantastic form.
Player of the week: Andreas Luthe (Union Berlin)
Any keeper who keeps Bayern from scoring more than one deserves credit, but Luthe deserves more having effectively saved a well-deserved point on his own in the final minutes. After a host of saves during the game, Luthe clawed out a Leroy Sané header that looked destined for the net to cap a fine performance.
Young player of the week: Silas Wamangituka (Stuttgart)
Two goals and an assist in a 5-1 win in Dortmund is a perfect way to spend an afternoon, and that is exactly what 21-year-old attacker Silas Wamangituka did. The Democratic Republic of the Congo forward delivered a career best performance, one that sank Dortmund and saw Stuttgart win big.
Coach of the week: Pellegrino Matarazzo (Stuttgart)
Any coach who leads his side to a 5-1 win in Dortmund deserves credit. Matarazzo got his side pressing hard but more impressively made sure his side were absolutely brutal on the counterattack. While Dortmund's errors were glaring, Stuttgart were right there when they need to be.