Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen Make Strong Start to Year with 3-2 Win at Dortmund

Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso praised his team's discipline and development after their 3-2 win at Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga restart.

Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso praised his team's discipline and development after their impressive 3-2 victory at Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga restart on Friday. Leverkusen dominated the game, scoring three goals in the opening 19 minutes against a Dortmund side missing several key players due to illness.

Alonso expressed his satisfaction with the team's performance, saying, “We are very satisfied with the performance and with the win.” He emphasized the significance of winning at Dortmund, adding, “To come here and win with such a serious performance means that our development is important. A good start to the year.”

The victory marked Leverkusen's sixth consecutive Bundesliga win and ended Dortmund's unbeaten run at home this season. Leverkusen, the reigning German champions, are off to a strong start in the new year, building on their domestic league and Cup double from last season.

Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen have closed the gap on leaders Bayern Munich to just one point after their impressive 3-2 win at Borussia Dortmund. Leverkusen now have 35 points, while Bayern Munich, who play Borussia Moenchengladbach on Saturday, are on 36 points. Dortmund, meanwhile, are sixth on 25 points.

Alonso praised his team's performance, highlighting their strong start to the game. “We did the work in the beginning (of the game) and then we controlled it,” he said. Leverkusen took an early lead through Nathan Tella's goal after just 25 seconds, followed by Patrik Schick's strike in the eighth minute.

The Czech striker Schick added his second goal in the 19th minute, making it 3-1 after Dortmund had pulled a goal back through Jamie Gittens. Although Dortmund narrowed the gap to 3-2 with a 79th-minute penalty from Serhou Guirassy, they were unable to find an equalizer in the tense finale.

Alonso was pleased with his team's overall performance, both with and without the ball. “We did it well with the ball but we also did it really well without the ball. We did not concede much,” he said. Alonso emphasized the significance of this win, noting that it demonstrates Leverkusen's ability to compete against top European teams. “It is a development of our game that we can compete in this way, to play here with this discipline against a top, top team in Europe.”