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Borussia Dortmund dealt Bayer Leverkusen a heavy 4-2 defeat on Sunday, souring Xabi Alonso’s final home match in charge while bolstering their bid for a Champions League spot.
Leverkusen had made a strong start, taking the lead through Jeremie Frimpong, but were soon pegged back and overrun. Goals from Julian Brandt, Julian Ryerson, Karim Adeyemi and Serhou Guirassy completed a powerful comeback from the visitors.
Alonso, who guided Leverkusen to a domestic double last season, confirmed on Friday that he would step down at the end of the campaign, with widespread expectation that he will take over at Real Madrid.
Despite the result, the atmosphere at the BayArena was one of appreciation, with fans applauding their departing manager and displaying banners that read “Danke Xabi” in tribute.
“It was an emotional day, and this club will remain close to my heart,” Alonso said. “I’ll forget the scoreline soon enough.”
Although Leverkusen’s Bundesliga title defence officially ended last weekend with a 2-2 draw against Freiburg, supporters were still in high spirits, celebrating the club’s historic first league title claimed just 12 months ago.
Leverkusen defender Jonathan Tah, who is also leaving this summer, praised Alonso’s influence: “He’s got a presence about him. He’s not just a top coach but also a great human being. We owe him a lot.”
The home side controlled much of the first half, with only the heroics of Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel preventing them from running away early — the Swiss international made seven saves before the break.
Frimpong finally broke through in the 31st minute, finishing coolly into the top corner after Florian Wirtz danced through the box and drew defenders his way.
But Dortmund sprang to life almost instantly. Within two minutes, Adeyemi set up Brandt for the equaliser. Brandt then helped create the second goal before the break, regaining possession and sparking a move that ended with Ryerson rifling the ball home.
Dortmund continued their onslaught after the interval, with Adeyemi and Guirassy — both fresh from scoring doubles against Wolfsburg — striking within minutes of each other. Guirassy has now netted an astonishing 33 times in 44 appearances in his debut season at Dortmund.
Wirtz provided one last spark for Leverkusen in stoppage time, teeing up Jonas Hofmann for a consolation goal.
With one match left, Alonso will take charge of Leverkusen for the final time next Saturday at Mainz, though the team is already guaranteed a second-place finish.
Dortmund, once sitting 12th in the table, have surged back into the top-four race with 19 points from their last seven matches. They now trail fourth-placed Freiburg by just one point and face relegated Holstein Kiel in their final match.
Their task was helped when third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt dropped points in a 2-2 draw against St Pauli. Although Rasmus Kristensen gave Frankfurt an early lead with a goal after just 23 seconds, the visitors hit back through Manolis Saliakas and Morgan Guilavogui. Michy Batshuayi equalised and thought he had scored a winner late on, but the goal was disallowed for handball.
Frankfurt remain third and host Freiburg in a crucial clash next weekend, with the winner securing Champions League qualification. Dortmund will be hoping to capitalise if either side slips up.
Later on Sunday, Stuttgart were set to host Augsburg in the German Cup final dress rehearsal.
