Bayern Munich vs Bayer Leverkusen: Gamethread and Live Blog ...

Bayern Munich will be kicking themselves for not finding a goal in the 10 minutes before halftime. Bayern had all the momentum and some solid chances but failed to convert. Manuel Neuer’s early red card led to tired legs and minds that finally gave way to a goal in the 69th minute. Jamal Musiala was slow to press the cross, Kim Min-jae dropped the offside line too early, and Alphonso Davies let Nathan Tella run free for the game winner. Daniel Peretz had no chance to stop Tella’s header. After forcing Neuer into an early ejection, Jeremie Frimpong switched over to Leverkusen’s right flank and constantly rooted out attacks from Bayern’s speedsters, Kingsley Coman and Alphonso Davies. The Bayern crowd was extremely loud and supportive throughout the match. After both the red card and the goal, the fan base performed its duties admirably. As manager at Leverkusen, Xabi Alonso has three wins and two draws against Bayern. Leverkusen now has a clear path to repeating as champions in the DFB-Pokal.

FT: Leverkusen wins 1-0.

90’+5: Michael Olise’s last-ditch effort goes wide.

90’+3: Mathys Tel’s ambitious shot flies into the stands. Two minutes left.

90’+1: Jeremie Frimpong hits the crossbar, but is ruled offside.

90’: Dayot Upamecano’s header goes high and wide. Four minutes of stoppage time.

88’: Joshua Kimmich shuts down Florian Wirtz in the box, keeping Bayern’s chances barely alive.

84’: Substitution. Mathys Tel replaces Kim Min-jae for Bayern’s fifth and final change.

82’: Serge Gnabry gets loose but his shot is deflected away by Jonathan Tah.

78’: Yellow card. Matěj Kovář booked for wasting time.

70’: Triple substitution. Leon Goretzka, Kingsley Coman, and Konrad Laimer replaced by Aleksandar Pavlović, Serge Gnabry and Sacha Boey.

69’: Goal. Nathan Tella heads in a cross for the go-ahead goal.

61’: Double substitution. Halftime substitute Patrik Schick (calf injury) replaced by Nathan Tella. Nordi Mukiele replaced by Arthur.

53’: Double yellow cards. Members from each bench receive a booking. Things are getting very chippy...

52’: Yellow card. Leon Goretzka stymies the attack with a tactical slide tackle, but earns a booking.

50’: Another shot by Florian Wirtz goes just wide. Bayern need to close him down quicker in the final third.

46’: Substitution. Patrik Schick replaces Robert Andrich.

DFB-Pokal Halftime Scores Werder Bremen 0-0 Darmstadt Stuttgart 3-0 Regensburg (final) Arminia Bielefeld 3-1 Freiburg (final) Halftime Observations Manuel Neuer’s red card in the 17th minute kept the game goal-less. Leverkusen failed to convert the free kick, making the removal of Leroy Sané the main result of the foul. Five years ago, Manuel Neuer would have come out early enough to win that ball with a header. It’s a tough thing to admit, but it’s become Bayern’s reality. Instead, he earned his first professional red card. Daniel Peretz came off the bench completely cold and has been fantastic. Great positioning and reaction on both saves. If he can somehow pull off a clean sheet, he’ll have earned himself some playing time in the immediate future. For the 5-10 minutes following the red card, Leverkusen had the upper hand. Then Bayern (players, coaches, fans, everybody!) transformed and brought a relentless energy. If Bayern doesn’t burn out, they have the upper hand. I’m sticking with my pregame prediction: Bayern Munich wins 2-1. Leon Goretzka (header) and Jamal Musiala (controversial penalty kick) save the day.

45’+3: Kim Min-jae flicks on a header that barely misses the goal. He’s furious with himself.

45’: Florian Wirtz slices through the box but his cross across the goal goes untouched.

43’: Leon Goretzka’s header pushed over the crossbar Matěj Kovář.

38’: Kingsley Coman’s shot barely deflects wide. Bayern refuse to back down!

34’: Kingsley Coman’s header from a corner kick barely goes over the crossbar.

33’: Save! Daniel Peretz denies Frimpong.

32’: Konrad Laimer slips behind the Leverkusen defense then slams a shot into the side netting.

30’: Another wide shot, this one from Nordi Mukiele. Leverkusen are pressing the attack but haven’t challenged Peretz...yet.

22’: Yellow card. Florian Wirtz is booked for stepping into Joshua Kimmich’s free kick.

19’: Substitution. Leroy Sané replaced by Daniel Peretz.

17’: RED CARD! Manuel Neuer decks Jeremie Frimpong on a breakaway.

12’: Double yellow cards. Dayot Upamecano takes offense to another foul by Edmond Tapsoba, and a shoving match ensues.

11’: A poor clearance from Dayot Upamecano, but Florian Wirtz’s uncontested shot goes barely wide.

7’: Kingsley Coman records the first shot of the game, but it’s no trouble for Matěj Kovář.

1’: Game time, hoo!

Leroy Sané and Michael Olise will feature together in the starting lineup for the first time. Konrad Laimer held on to the right back starting spot, despite getting beat 1v1 by Jamie Gittens in the Dortmund game.

In his short yet successful tenure as manager at Bayer Leverkusen, Xabi Alonso has never lost to his former club, Bayern Munich. His counterpart, Vincent Kompany, has never been defeated by a German club during his managerial career.

Bayern has only scored multiple goals once in its last five matches, but the defense has been stellar in keeping opponents off the board. Stuttgart is the only German club to shut out Leverkusen this season.

Regardless of today’s result, an impressive streak or two will be broken.

Prediction: Bayern Munich wins 2-1. Leon Goretzka (header) and Jamal Musiala (controversial penalty kick) save the day.

It’s Bayern time.

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Match Info

Location: Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany

Time: 8:45 pm local time, 2:45 pm EST

TV/streaming: ESPN+, Find Your Country

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