Bayern draw keeps title door ajar as Dortmund lose to Leipzig
Bayern Munich were held to a 1-1 draw at Union Berlin on Saturday, giving defending champions Bayer Leverkusen an outside chance of dragging themselves back into the Bundesliga title race.
Bayern, who also dropped points in a surprise loss at home to Bochum last week, could be just six points ahead if Leverkusen win at Stuttgart on Sunday.
"It was a game of two stories: the performance and the result," said Bayern coach Vincent Kompany. "I've been in football long enough to know this wasn't a bad performance away from home.
"Sometimes when you don't score it's not because the strikers don't put it in, it's because the defenders and the keepers do a lot of things right."
Bayern had most of the ball but struggled to break through a resolute Union defence.
With few chances in the opening period, Bayern's best chance came after 51 minutes when Harry Kane drilled a free-kick through the wall but into the palms of Frederik Ronnow.
Leroy Sane put the visitors ahead after 75 minutes when he skated through a crowded penalty area to tap in a Josip Stanisic pass.
Union were however the better team after the goal and the hosts levelled through Benedict Hollerbach, who was on the spot to take advantage of an error from inexperienced goalkeeper Jonas Urbig.
Union rose in intensity in the dying stages but were unable to land the killer blow which would have seen them beat Bayern for the first time in their history, on their 12th attempt.
Despite hovering dangerously close to the relegation spots for much of the season, Union have a strong record at home against the league's best sides.
Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Eintracht Frankfurt, Mainz, Freiburg and now Bayern have all left Berlin without winning.
Union coach Steffen Baumgart credited his side's "passion in defence", saying the hosts had "won a point that nobody would have expected" as they went seven clear of the relegation spots.
- Dortmund 'beat themselves' in Leipzig -
Champions League finalists in June, Dortmund's chances of reaching the competition next season look over after a 2-0 loss at RB Leipzig left them in 11th spot.
The hosts took the lead after 18 minutes when Xavi Simons tapped in a rebound after a Leipzig counter.
Lois Openda superbly volleyed home Simons' floated corner to double the lead just after half-time.
Dortmund laid siege to Leipzig's penalty area in the second half, hitting the crossbar three times, but could not break through despite a wealth of chances, with striker Serhou Guirassy spurning several good opportunities.
Dortmund will now need a miracle to avoid missing the Champions League for just the second time in the past 15 seasons.
Midfielder Pascal Gross admitted reaching the top four was "unrealistic".
"Big statements (about turning things around) are always easy, anyone can make them, but on the pitch we failed once again," he said.
Leipzig's win took them to fifth, level on points with fourth-placed Frankfurt, who play at Bochum on Sunday. Dortmund are seven points behind.
"You can't lose a game like that -- we beat ourselves, that's what happened today," said Dortmund coach Niko Kovac.
Unlikely Champions League candidates Mainz and Freiburg drew 2-2. Hosts Mainz, reduced to 10 men when Dominik Kohr saw red after 43 minutes, twice took the lead but Freiburg equalised both times.
The result leaves Mainz third and Freiburg sixth, with neither side having ever played in the Champions League.
An Alassane Plea hat-trick took Borussia Moenchengladbach to a 4-2 win at Werder Bremen, keeping the visitors on track for a return to European football.
Plea's first-half brace had Gladbach on track but Bremen scored twice in seven minutes through Romano Schmid and Andre Silva, his first goal for the club, to level things up at half-time.
Plea scored just two minutes into the second half and Germany striker Tim Kleindienst added another to seal the victory.
Augsburg's impressive 2025 continued with a 1-0 home win over Wolfsburg, with Phillip Tietz scoring the only goal.
Augsburg are now unbeaten in 10 in the league and have conceded just three goals this calendar year, the lowest mark in the top five European leagues.
dwi/mw
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