Bayern Munich rolls out the red carpet for Leverkusen; Tuchel under further pressure

Bayern Munich has been dealt a blow in the battle for the German league title. Thomas Tuchel's team, whose position continues to falter, lost 3-2 at relegation candidate VfL Bochum. Bayern failed to score 0-2 through Harry Kane, after which der Rekordmeister could no longer be saved. Dayot Upamecano caused a penalty and was sent off, just like on Wednesday against Lazio. Bayern is eight points behind title favorite Bayer Leverkusen.

On the Bayern side, Matthijs de Ligt was given a starting place by Tuchel. Another ex-Ajax player, Noussair Mazraoui, was also allowed to show it from the start. Up front, striker Kane was supported in his back by Thomas Müller, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Jamal Musiala. At Bochum, former Vitesse star Maximilian Wittek started on the bench.

Bochum provided the first really dangerous moment of the match. A great cross from Kevin Stöger ended up on the head of midfielder Anthony Losilla, who saw his header end up on Manuel Neuer's goal. On the other side it was a hit. Leon Goretzka reached Musiala, who opened the ball and found the short corner with a devastating shot: 0-1.

In the pouring rain, Kane should have made it 0-2. The English striker was found uncovered and only had to outwit goalkeeper Manuel Riemann, while he could also have laid wide on a teammate. Kane decided to shoot himself and saw his effort fly high in an atypical manner.

It turned out to be a very expensive miss from Kane. Just under ten minutes before half-time, Bayern lost ball in midfield, which Losilla took advantage of. The Frenchman looked up and saw the space on the right with Takuma Asano, who was too powerful for everything and everyone at Bayern and, after an excellent first assumption, found the far corner with a powerful shot: 1-1.

A nice boost for Bochum, which is fighting for survival. The supporters in the Vonovia Ruhr Stadium could cheer again just before half time. A corner kick from Stöger ended up at the near post for Keven Schlotterbeck, who enjoyed a lot of space. Also because Choupo-Moting did not enter the game and De Ligt arrived too late, Schlotterbeck headed home: 2-1.

While Bayern played reasonably well in the first half hour, the game after that was poor. Things had to improve after the break, but the level certainly did not improve. Tuchel tried to force something and brought in Joshua Kimmich and Choupo-Moting for Bryan Zaragoza and Leroy Sané respectively. However, even with those fresh forces within the lines, things did not go well at all.

Bayern played well below the limit, could not escape the pressure from Bochum and fell even deeper into the swamp when Upamecano, who came on for Mazraoui, planted his elbow in Schlotterbeck's face. Upamecano received his second yellow card and, just like midweek against Lazio in the Champions League, was sent off the field. Stöger took the penalty and shot through Neuer's glove: 3-1.

Bayern obviously tried to get back into the match, but the desired goals did not materialize for a long time. Musiala tried with a shot, but Riemann came out on top. Shortly afterwards, the goalkeeper also had a fantastic reflex on a shot by Sané. Shortly afterwards it became a competition again. On a pass from Mathys Tel, Kane scored easily: 3-2. The Englishman had a huge heading opportunity in injury time. However, his attempt lacked power and direction, allowing Riemann to pick up.

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