Leverkusen stay close to Bayern thanks to late win at Heidenheim
Leverkusen stay close to Bayern thanks to late win at Heidenheim
Leverkusen's Emiliano Buendia (3rd L) celebrates scoring his side's first goal with teammates during the German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Heidenheim and Bayer Leverkusen at Voith-Arena. Harry Langer/dpa
Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen remained six points behind leaders Bayern Munich thanks to a 1-0 stoppage-time win at lowly Heidenheim on Saturday.
Bayern had extended their lead to nine points after a 3-1 win against Augsburg on Friday evening.
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After a shock elimination from the German Cup in a 2-1 defeat to third-division Arminia Bielefeld on Tuesday, Leverkusen were on the verge of another setback, but Emiliano Buendia's goal in the first minute of stoppage time secured them the crucial three points.
Borussia Dortmund, meanwhile, moved up to eighth and are two points away from the Conference League spot after thrashing Freiburg 4-1.
Karim Adeyemi gave Dortmund a deserved lead in the 34th and Carney Chukwuemeka, Serhou Guirassy and Jamie Gittens completed the win in the second half. Maximilian Eggestein pulled one back for Freiburg in the 88th.
RB Leipzig defeated 10-man Hoffenheim 3-1 to give coach Zsolt Löw a win in his Bundesliga debut. Löw started his interim job at Leipzig with a 3-1 loss to VfB Stuttgart in the German Cup on Wednesday.
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Elsewhere, Ermedin Demirovic scored a hat-trick in Stuttgart's 4-0 thrashing of Bochum, while Mainz fought back for a draw against bottom side Holstein Kiel. Later on Saturday, Eintracht Frankfurt visit Werder Bremen.
Leipzig's Yussuf Poulsen celebrates scoring his side's third goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between RB Leipzig and TSG 1899 Hoffenheim at the Red Bull Arena. Elisa Schu/dpa
Stuttgart's Ermedin Demirovic (C) scores his side's third goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and VfB Stuttgart at Vonovia Ruhrstadion. Fabian Strauch/dpa
Dortmund's Jamie Gittens (R) celebrates scoring his side's fourth goal with teammates during the German Bundesliga soccer match between SC Freiburg and Borussia Dortmund at Europa-Park Stadium. Tom Weller/dpa
Mainz's Nelson Weiper (R) celebrates scoring his side's first goal with teammate Jonathan Burkhardt during the German Bundesliga soccer match between FSV Mainz 05 and Holstein Kiel at Mewa Arena. Torsten Silz/dpa
Dortmund's Serhou Guirassy (L) celebrates scoring his side's third goal with teammate Julian Brandt during the German Bundesliga soccer match between SC Freiburg and Borussia Dortmund at Europa-Park Stadium. Tom Weller/dpa
Dortmund's Carney Chukwuemeka celebrates scoring his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between SC Freiburg and Borussia Dortmund at Europa-Park Stadium. Tom Weller/dpa
Leipzig's Benjamin Sesko (L) celebrates scoring his side's first goal with teammate Nicolas Seiwald during the German Bundesliga soccer match between RB Leipzig and TSG 1899 Hoffenheim at the Red Bull Arena. Jan Woitas/dpa
Leipzig's Lois Openda celebrates scoring his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between RB Leipzig and TSG 1899 Hoffenheim at the Red Bull Arena. Elisa Schu/dpa
Kiel's Alexander Bernhardsson (3rd R) celebrates scoring his side's first goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between FSV Mainz 05 and Holstein Kiel at Mewa Arena. Torsten Silz/dpa
Dortmund's Karim Adeyemi (L) celebrates scoring his side's first goal with teammate Daniel Svensson during the German Bundesliga soccer match between SC Freiburg and Borussia Dortmund at Europa-Park Stadium. Tom Weller/dpa
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