RB Leipzig was well behind Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga on Sunday (May 14, 2023) until the final phase – and still won.
When Dominik Szoboszlai scored the winning goal for Leipzig, it was already the sixth minute of added time. Leonardo Bittencourt had put Werder Bremen in the lead (70′) before Willi Orban scored the equalizer shortly before the end of regulation time (87′).
Thanks to the last-minute win, Leipzig now has 60 points in the table, overtaking 1. FC Union Berlin (59) in third place.
In the meantime, Bremen could even dream of staying up early, a win would have made it clear that the Hanseatic League would remain in the Bundesliga. In the end, however, Werder didn’t take three points from Leipzig, but none. “It’s frustrating when you can’t make it on time.”Bremen coach Ole Werner said on ARD radio.
With 35 points, Werder Bremen still has a good chance of staying up. The lead over Schalke 04 in 16th place is five points – plus the significantly better goal difference. However, at least one point is still missing for mathematical security.
Leipzig’s Szoboszlai shoots a corner – and hits the post
The first half in Leipzig was one in which RB was superior in terms of football – without shining. Marco Rose’s team had more possession, won the majority of tackles and had a total of seven shots on target. But Leipzig didn’t score a goal – even if there wasn’t much missing in two scenes.
Once, in the 20th minute, Szoboszlai crossed to Timo Werner. And Werner took the ball and shot, it was a smooth movement. Centimeters were missing for guidance.
When things got exciting again just before the break, Szoboszlai was involved again. Only this time not as a master. He took a corner directly to the short corner, Bremen goalkeeper Jiri Pavlenka looked somewhat surprised. And he was lucky that the shot hit the post and went wide from there (42′).
Schmid, Ducksch, Bittencourt – Bremen is approaching
The guests from Bremen, on the other hand, lacked ideas in the offensive game for a long time. Romano Schmid had Werder’s first chance to score in the 55th minute. At the edge of the penalty area, Jens Stage put the ball in for Schmid, whose shot just missed the goal. Leipzig goalkeeper Janis Blaswich would have been without a chance to defend himself.
The best phase of Werder Bremen followed. First Mitchell Weiser released Marvin Ducksch, but his shot was parried by Blaswich. That was in the 64th minute. Less than sixty seconds later, Leonardo Bittencourt pulled towards the penalty area from the left, but flicked the ball just wide of the far corner. A few minutes later, Bittencourt did better.
Stage on Bittencourt – Werder lead
After a cross from Stage from the right, Bittencourt was free behind Leipzig’s defence. He took the ball directly, which was not without risk, but the plan worked. His shot landed in the goal, this time Blaswich was beaten.
Goal denied by Nkunku – Leipzig struggles
Leipzig coach Marco Rose looked somewhat dissatisfied on the sidelines. He was certainly concerned with the defensive performance of his team. But he was probably also concerned with a decision by referee Florian Badstübner. The 66th minute was running when Christopher Nkunku put the ball in the goal after preliminary work by Konrad Laimer and Werner. But RB’s jubilation was short-lived.
Because Badstübner got a signal from the VAR and looked at a scene in the creation of the goal again. And indeed: Mohamed Simakan had pushed Bittencourt slightly. But was that also a foul? Referee Badstübner saw it that way after studying the video images, he revised his decision. Instead of 1:0 it was shortly afterwards 0:1.
Two goals in less than ten minutes – Leipzig turns the game
When referee Badstübner called off the match half an hour later, the mood of Leipzig coach Rose was different. He told ARD radio: “To turn the game around with the course of the game: a big compliment to the team.”
In the closing stages, his team turned a 0-1 lead into a 2-1. Orban first hit his head after a cross from Nkunku. Then, with the last minute of added time already running, Nkunku gave the foreman again. Szoboszlai only had to push his cross over the line.
Leipzig with the record champions
Next weekend Leipzig has to play the top game at FC Bayern Munich (Saturday, May 20th, 2023 at 6.30 p.m.). Bremen welcomes 1. FC Köln three hours earlier.