Leverkusen completes historic undefeated Bundesliga season
Bayer Leverkusen has officially completed their unbeaten 2023/24 Bundesliga campaign.
The German club topped Augsburg 2-1 in front of their home fans on Saturday. Star striker Victor Boniface started the scoring with a goal just 12 minutes into the match.
Midfielder Robert Andrich then doubled his team’s advantage before the half-hour mark. Although Augsburg did snatch a second-half goal, Leverkusen eventually finished off the match with yet another victory.
The triumph is particularly impressive since no other Bundesliga team has gone an entire season unbeaten before.
Leverkusen previously wrapped up the title weeks ago, but now lift the title with a truly special honor. The club, currently managed by Xabi Alonso, had previously never collected a Bundesliga championship in their 119-year history.
Along with finishing their domestic campaign undefeated, Leverkusen has also remained without a loss in their other competitions as well. The club has two more matches remaining on the schedule.
Alonso can next collect the Europa League title on May 22nd against Atalanta. The Spaniard will then lead his team against Kaiserslautern for a chance at the DFB-Pokal three days later in Berlin.
Union Berlin avoids relegation with dramatic goal in added time
Along with Leverkusen completing their unbeaten Bundesliga season, the German top flight had plenty of drama at the other end of the table.
Darmstadt 98 previously suffered pending relegation following their dismal display throughout the current campaign. The club ultimately finished bottom of the standings after winning just three matches during the season.
Nevertheless, the other two relegation places were up in the air heading into the day. Koln and Union Berlin both needed victories on Saturday in order to avoid joining Darmstadt in the 2. Bundesliga. Koln, however, suffered a heavy 4-1 defeat away to Heidenheim to remain 17th in the top flight table. The hosts quickly went out to a 3-0 lead in the match before each club netted second-half scores.
While Koln could not muster any luck on the day, Union Berlin managed to avoid relegation with a massive win against Freiburg. The Iron Ones thought they were sunk after Ritsu Doan scored an equalizer for Freiburg in the 85th minute of the match. Nevertheless, Janik Haberer eventually netted the game-winning goal in added time to lift Berlin to safety.
Bochum must win playoffs to remain in German top flight
As a result of the Union Berlin triumph, Bochum unfortunately fell into the potential drop zone. The Blues entered the weekend sitting 14th in the standings, three points from relegation.
Much like Koln, Bochum was also hit with four goals on the day, but from Werder Bremen. The heavy defeat meant that the Blues dropped below of Berlin on goal difference.
Bochum, however, is not yet relegated to the second tier. Instead, the club is set to face Fortuna Dusseldorf in a playoff matchup. The two teams will play each other in a two-legged final to determine which club will feature in the Bundesliga during the 2024/25 season. Dusseldorf recently finished third in the 2. Bundesliga, earning a place in the aforementioned playoffs.
Photo credit: IMAGO / RHR-Foto.