The top dogs in the Bundesliga continue their reign in the German league after a brilliant performance by Patrik Schick, who carried his team to a ruthless victory against a helpless Bochum outfit at BayArena.
The Czech striker made his first start in 14 months, and he announced his return with a first-half hat-trick. Schick started his historic night by converting a penalty seconds before the half hour.
The 27-year-old looked to prove his manager’s faith by quickly doubling his goals just two minutes after scoring his penalty. Jeremie Frimpong pushed the ball into a threatening position before delivering a surgical cross that ended up in front of a striding Schick, who then slotted the ball in the bottom left corner of the goal.
It was hunting season, and Schick was out for blood as he scored once again in the first half to secure his hat-trick, this time from a corner conversion where he towered over Bochum defenders, then headed the ball to almost the exact same spot where he scored his second goal.
Victor Boniface came in for Schick and immediately joined in the scoring party, scoring a goal just two minutes after coming on. Their 4-0 victory was an exclamation point for their magnificent run this calendar year. Leverkusen finish 2023 as the best club in the German top flight, and SBOTOP football fans should be excited for what’s in store for Xabi Alonso and his team next year.
Dortmund continue their dry spell
BVB had a great opportunity to end their pedestrian stretch of football in the Bundesliga when the boys from Mainz paid a visit to the Yellow Wall.
Coming into this match, Edin Terzić and his team have won just one match in their last five Bundesliga matches while tallying two draws and two losses to boot. They haven’t been the same in their domestic form since their humbling 0-4 Der Klassiker defeat last month.
But even though their form has been a bit tepid in recent weeks, they’ve been faring well against Europe’s best clubs in the Champions League and even won Group F, aka the Group of Death.
So, hosting Mainz, a club that’s in the bottom three of the league table, would be a great chance for Terzić’s outfit to bounce back and go back to their winning ways in front of their home fans.
Unfortunately for them, the visiting Mainz came to play.
It was an action-packed first half, where Julian scored the opening goal at minute 29. Dutch defender Sepp van den Berg got one back and equalised with a short-range header right before halftime.
BVB struggled to put up convincing attacks, as they shot 22 times, but only seven were on target. The second half ended in a stalemate, and the game ended with a 1-1 score line. Mainz are more than happy to grab a point against a dangerous Dortmund squad. Marco Reus and his teammates have to end their calendar year as the fifth seed in the Bundesliga with a six-point deficit from fourth-placed Leipzig.
Usual suspects for Stuttgart
Stuttgart’s dynamic duo was at it again as they carried VfB to a 3-0 win against Augsburg at the MHPArena.
Guirassy and Undav were shut down by Bayern Munich’s defence during their last tie, but these talented goal scorers won’t be halted for long. It was only a matter of time before Deniz Undav and Serhou Guirassy’s names would be up on the scoreboard; true enough, it only took them three days to go back to their scoring ways.
Undav started the party with an opening goal in minute 18, while Guirassy got his and doubled their lead right before halftime. The game was pretty much over and done by halftime, given the fact that Stuttgart dominated in every facet of the game.
But just to be on the safe side, Chris Führich scored the dagger of the match to seal the victory for his side with a 69th-minute volley to put VfB up 3-0.
Thanks to the brilliance of their offence, Sebastian Hoeneß’s team finished 2023 as the third-best club in the Bundesliga and had successfully overtaken Leipzig in the league standings.
Kane and Bayern won’t go away
Bayern’s championship DNA and resilience are wildly underrated. The defending Bundesliga champions just won’t give Leverkusen a clear runway to the Meisterschale, as they keep the pressure on the league leaders by winning their Matchday 16 clash against Wolfsburg.
The Bavarians looked calm and poised when they knocked on the gates of Volkswagen Arena. They kept up the pressure and maintained their brand of football all throughout the contest by dominating on both ends of the field.
Musiala scored the first goal in minute 33, and then the Bundesliga’s leading goal scorer Harry Kane doubled Bayern’s lead 10 minutes later. Wolfsburg’s Maximilian Arnold got one back before halftime to end the first half with a 1-2 score line.
Neither team added to their score in the second half, and the Bundesliga 2023 odds favourites Bayern Munich got out of the hostile Volkswagen Arena with three league points. With this win, Kane and the Bavarians remain within striking distance of Leverkusen, who have been producing favourable Bundesliga 2023 results since the season began.
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