Do not bury your head in the sand

The match statistics are only decisive in the subject of goals and there Dortmund has 2 and we 0. Unfortunately, it is of little use if we are ahead in all other match statistics: shots on goal 21 (Dortmund: 7), possession 57% (43%), duel rate 57% (43%) or pass rate 85% (81%).

The Werkself must not bury their heads in the sand after this home defeat. The season is still long enough and there are still plenty of chances to close the gap in front. In contrast to the fall, the relegation battle is no longer an issue. And the last few weeks have shown that it is possible. However, it would be important that Patrik Schick is quickly fit again. Our game would probably be a little more effective with a real center forward.

Friday we go directly to Augsburg. We've never lost there. And above all, it's about making up for the home defeat at the start of the Bundesliga, since it was Augsburg's first ever win over the Werkself. The following Saturday, the Bavarians then play host to Hoffenheim. Hopefully they won't fire their coach by then, that would probably make our lives a little easier. And we still have something to make up against Hoffenheim.

Unspectacular victory against Bochum

From 15th to eighth place - in just five games. Bayer continues to climb up the Bundesliga table as its winning streak continued with a 2-0 victory over VfL Bochum. However, it is also a fact that the three-goal win over the relegation candidate was more of a work victory than a gala.

In contrast to the fall, however, it must also be noted that the team plays a game down more cleverly, but unfortunately not until the end. Against Gladbach, we led 3:0 and didn't finish the game confidently, and it could have been close again against Bochum.

At the end of the first half of the season, Leverkusen is now in eighth place and has its sights back on the international places. However, there is a gap at the top, as seventh place is five points away. This means that the disastrous start has been made up for quite well. However, it is important to stay on track and score more points on Sunday against Dortmund, which has also been unconvincing recently.

Gladbach suits us

The Werkself continued its upward trend with a 3-2 win at Borussia Mönchengladbach. At the end of Matchday 16, our team built up a 3-0 lead, but had to shiver at the end due to a late double strike by Borussia. From the black-and-red perspective, it was not only the points on this icy Sunday evening that were pleasing, but also the comeback of Flo Wirtz in a competitive match.

The decisive factor for the victory was clearly the fact that the Werkself's wing players had much more speed, so that the Gladbachers were clearly overwhelmed on one or two occasions. Player of the match for me was Amin Adli. The Frenchman was on the move with a lot of dynamism, also asserting himself against his opponents in tight spaces and showing a few nice feints in the process. He won a running duel against the almost helpless Nico Elvedi and scored the 2:0 goal. The 22-year-old also prepared the 3:0 goal.

However, the two goals conceded at the back also show that you have to be wide awake until the end. That can also go wrong against a stronger opponent. The three points are important, and on Wednesday against Bochum the Werkself must find its way back to its old home strength.