FC Bayern spared many stars, but they can’t be stopped with the B-Elf in the Bundesliga. Although Vincent Kompany is looking at the Champions League-Cracker near Paris St Germain Bayer 04 Leverkusen went down in Munich on Saturday. The 3-0 (3-0) was Bayern’s 15th win in their 15th competitive game. The goals were scored by Serge Gnabry (25th minute), Nicolas Jackson (31st) and Leverkusen’s Loic Badé (own goal/43rd).
“I’m just happy about the three points. I have more and more confidence in what the team can do together”said Kompany after giving Harry Kane, among others, a break. “Of course the team is always better when Harry is there, but it felt like it was a good moment for the other boys. So we have a top-fit Harry against Paris on Tuesday, which is also important.”
Kompany had already made this game a priority before kick-off. Three days before the summit meeting in the premier class at PSG, when the first in the table will meet the second, not only Kane was on the bench, but also Luis Diaz and Michael Olise and other top players. What had looked like a risk in the game against a supposed title rival in the Bundesliga, however, turned out not to be such a risk at all.
Bayer blocks, Bayern scores thanks Bishop dream pass
This was apparent from the first seconds, because Leverkusen played so fearfully that defeat was inevitable. The “Werkself” and the entire team lined up at the back, Patrik Schick was the first Bayer professional to defend around 30 meters from his own goal. It went well for a few minutes, Lennart Karl had the first chances (7th and 15th minutes) and then prepared the greatest opportunity for Leon Goretzka (18th), who headed past the goal from five meters.
Then an outstanding pass from Tom Bischof revealed the glaring weaknesses in Leverkusen’s defense. She moved up a bit and was severely punished with a flat ball over 60 meters. Gnabry picked up the pass that Jarrell Quansah had made possible with a strange running path and tunneled through Mark Flekken to give Bayern a 1-0 lead (25th).
Sports show, November 1st, 2025 8:57 p.m
Badé doesn’t make things too difficult for Munich
Previously, Munich had seemed reserved, but after that the Bayer defense was on fire almost every minute. And that offered space that a top team like Bayern uses coldly. Another example was the 2-0, when Konrad Laimer was allowed to cross completely unchallenged and Jackson scored his first Bundesliga goal with a header because Loic Badé had left him completely alone in the six-yard box (31′).
Badé was also the focus of the third goal – twice. The Frenchman initially allowed himself a bad pass in his own penalty area, then Raphael Guerreiro crossed the ball into the middle and Badé’s attempt to clear the ball ended up in his own goal (43′). The game had already been decided and there must have been quite a few who wondered what Kane, Diaz and Olise had actually done with this defense.
Bayern bring their top trio – but take it easy
Even after the break it was completely disordered. After a short corner, Laimer crossed again to Jackson, who headed past the empty goal from three meters (50th), Guerreiro missed the next high-caliber goal in the 58th minute. And then Kompany gave his super trio about half an hour to warm up for the PSG summit meeting – in the 59th minute he substituted Kane, Olise and Diaz.
But that didn’t change the fact that Bayern were, as before, in a lower gear. The game was correspondingly quiet because Leverkusen continued to play very defensively and limited themselves to not letting the evening become too bitter. And then Bayer actually had a good opportunity, but Christian Kofane’s free finish also had little class and was clearly missed (74′).
Sports show, November 1st, 2025 8:54 p.m
Munich doesn’t waste any energy before the PSG game
Bayern switched completely into savings mode in the certainty that the team would be challenged much more on Tuesday at PSG (9 p.m.). Leverkusen recently felt the full class of the defending champions in the Champions League when the French dismantled coach Kasper Hjulmand’s team 7-2. Now the duel between perhaps the two best teams in Europe is coming up.
Bayer is now very far from these spheres and has to accept the end of a record series after Bayern’s bankruptcy: The “Werkself” had not lost an away game 37 times in a row since May 2023. Leverkusen wants to get back on the road to success abroad; on Wednesday they play Benfica Lisbon, where the aim is to eradicate the weak start to the group phase (two points from three games). For Bayern, Bayer was just an appetizer.
“Tuesday it will be a game with the highest intensity, the highest there is in Europe, that applies to both teams”said Kompany. “Now we don’t have to worry about fitness anymore. I think a lot of people thought that something could happen today, that’s normal – the opponent probably also thought that this was a moment for us. The most important thing for me was that we fight it with fire and march completely.”