Bayer Leverkusen crowned first ever Bundesliga champions after thumbing Bremen 5-0
The t-shirts had already been printed. Red fumes filled the air as fireworks were set off on the road leading into the BayArena, which had been re-named ‘Xabi Alonso Allee’ (Xabi Alonso Avenue) for the day. For the first time in their history, Bayer Leverkusen are the champions of Germany.
With 16 points separating themselves, Bayern Munich and Stuttgart going into last weekend, it had been clear for a number of weeks that it was only a matter of time before Leverkusen finally shed their ‘Neverkusen’ nickname.
It was given to them after they let the Bundesliga title slip from their grasp in both the 1999-2000 and 2001-2002 seasons. They have been the perennial runners-up of German football. The nearly men.
Alonso will go down in history as the one who ended 120 years of hurt, who ended Bayern’s 11-year domination and he may go down as the first ever manager to lead a Bundesliga side to an unbeaten season. It is now 43 games and counting.
While there was a carnival-like atmosphere in this small city, home to less than 170,000 people, Leverkusen’s painful history of title collapses meant there was always going to be a small seed of doubt until the job was done. They need not have worried.
Werder Bremen had the chance to spoil the party, though many of their fans were of the opinion that Leverkusen taking the title away from Bayern could only be good for German football.
If their team was beaten, at least they got to be part of history. Bremen midfielder Naby Keita was one who did not get to witness it, after he decided not to get on the team bus upon being told he would not start.
After a cagey opening, with Leverkusen dominating the ball but failing to break through Bremen’s back-line, Victor Boniface was given the chance to settle some nerves mid-way through the first half as Jonas Hofman was brought down in the box by Julian Malatini.
Referee Harms Osmers did not originally give the penalty, but changed his mind after reviewing the footage on the VAR monitor. Boniface, Leverkusen’s top scorer, converted emphatically.
There was still some nervousness while the score remained 1-0, but the home fans were able to relax when Granit Xhaka fired a sensational first-time strike into the top left corner. Xhaka, signed from Arsenal in the summer, has been one of Alonso’s players of the season.
If Xhaka’s goal was good, then the one that followed it was even better. One of the reasons there is much resentment of Leverkusen in nearby Cologne is because the club signed Florian Wirtz from their academy in 2020.
There is a gentleman’s agreement between the Rhineland rivals – Cologne, Leverkusen and Borussia Monchengladbach – that they will not target each other’s youngsters. But when a 17-year-old Wirtz indicated he wanted first team opportunities, Leverkusen made their move.
This season he has spearheaded their title charge and his strike in the 68th minute was a beauty, sailing over the head of Bremen goalkeeper Michael Zetterer.
Leverkusen had asked supporters not to invade the pitch due to its importance to the club’s style of play. They do much work to protect it, but those calls were always likely to fall on deaf ears as fans stormed onto the field after Wirtz had added a fourth goal in the 83rd minute.
When he added a fifth to claim his hat-trick in the 90th minute, they ran on once again. With less than a minute left, the referee called full-time, bringing about an even more spectacular pitch invasion. These supporters have waited a long time for this moment and the BayArena was a sea of red and black.
There is a line in Bayer 04 – we stand by you, the club’s anthem played before games, which says ‘We have the UEFA Cup and the DFB Pokal, next time they’ll win the Bundesliga.’
Those lyrics need updating, for Leverkusen are finally champions of Germany. Neverkusen, no more.
