Bundesliga: Dortmund Edge Leverkusen in Thriller

Aaron Anselmino scores first Dortmund goal in 2-1 win

Borussia Dortmund came from behind to beat Bayer Leverkusen 2-1, with Aaron Anselmino scoring his first goal for the club. The win sees Dortmund move up to third place in the Bundesliga, while Leverkusen's title hopes take a hit.

Dortmund seemed set to secure a comfortable 2-1 win over Leverkusen, having led 2-0 at one point...

Borussia Dortmund secured a crucial 2-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen, climbing to third place in the Bundesliga standings. Aaron Anselmino scored his first goal for Dortmund, heading home a Daniel Svensson free-kick in the 41st minute. Karim Adeyemi doubled the lead in the 65th minute with a header from Fabio Silva's cross.

Bayer Leverkusen had been on a roll, winning their last four matches with a 12-1 aggregate score, and fresh off a 2-0 Champions League win at Manchester City. However, Dortmund's strong performance earned them the three points, despite Leverkusen's late push and Christian Kofane's 83rd-minute goal.

That translated onto the pitch, where they produced the first genuine opening after 10 minutes as Ernest Poku cut inside and blazed over from a promising position.

From there, the hosts remained largely on top in the first period, but having failed to convert their possession into clear-cut chances, Die Werkself were punished before half-time when Daniel Svensson’s set-piece delivery found Aaron Anselmino, who powered a header past Mark Flekken.

After netting the opening goal in nine of their previous 10 home games, it was an unfamiliar situation for Leverkusen as they went into the break trailing.

The onus was certainly on Kasper Hjulmand’s side after the restart, and they passed up a golden opportunity through Malik Tillman, who skewed a header off-target at the back post whilst under pressure from Serhou Guirassy.

At the other end, Guirassy forced a reflex stop out of Flekken - his last meaningful contribution before making way for Fabio Silva. That substitution took just four minutes to pay dividends, as a wonderful whipped cross from Silva caught Loic Bade flat-footed, allowing Karim Adeyemi to get in front of his marker and nod home BVB’s second.

Dortmund seemed set to secure a comfortable 2-1 win over Leverkusen, having led 2-0 at one point. However, the visitors' hopes were revived when Christian Kofane scored in the 83rd minute, capitalizing on an inswinging cross from Ibrahim Maza.

DORTMUND hält stand, DORTMUND gewinnt! 💥 pic.twitter.com/0kvnXHRdDs

— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) November 29, 2025

Despite Jonas Hofmann's shot hitting the crossbar and Julian Brandt's missed one-on-one opportunity, Dortmund appeared to be cruising to victory. Leverkusen's late goal sparked a frantic finish, but Dortmund's defense held firm to secure the win.

Dortmund bounced back from recent stoppage-time heartbreaks with a 2-1 win over Leverkusen, leapfrogging them into third place in the Bundesliga standings. This victory marked a turning point for Dortmund, ending Leverkusen's impressive November run, where they'd won all their fixtures except for a 3-0 loss to Bayern Munich.

Leverkusen's loss was their sixth in 10 meetings against Dortmund, with two wins and two draws in their previous encounters. Dortmund's win was fueled by Aaron Anselmino's first goal for the club and Karim Adeyemi's decisive header, securing a crucial three points.