2–0 Against Leipzig – Exactly the Stability We Have Been Missing

Some wins feel bigger than the scoreline. The 2–0 against RB Leipzig was one of those for me. Not because Bayer 04 played them off the park for 90 minutes – far from it. The first half in particular was hard work. But after the defensive wobbles of recent weeks, there was something much more important to see this time: organisation, discipline and the ability to win a match even when everything is not flowing perfectly.

The afternoon also began on a sad note. Bayer played in mourning bands in memory of Peter Hermann and the BayArena paid tribute to a man who shaped football in Leverkusen for decades. Once the game started, the Werkself were focused, even if Leipzig initially looked the more dangerous side. Mark Flekken had to deal with an early effort from Banzuzi, and for a long time it was a tactical, fairly cautious contest. Bayer had spells of control but too often lacked precision in the final third. Miguel Gutiérrez just missed a Quansah cross, Aleix Garcia fired over and Schick and Diaby failed to convert a double chance. I had more or less settled for 0–0 at half-time.

Then came Schick. Of course. Gutiérrez delivered a perfect cross and Schick met it first time just before the break. A superb finish, but also a goal at exactly the right moment. When a first half has been difficult and not much has worked cleanly, scoring seconds before the whistle is worth a great deal. Schick currently has that lovely striker’s simplicity again: no unnecessary touch, no second thoughts. Ball arrives, ball goes in.

Bayer were much better after the break. Maza, Diaby and Moreira brought more pace to the attacking play, the combinations became smoother and Leipzig gradually lost their grip on the match. The visitors certainly helped with the second goal, but Gutiérrez still had to punish the mistake – and he did, firing home his first competitive goal for Bayer. After also creating the opener, he was comfortably my man of the match.

More important than either goal, though, was what happened at the other end. That is where I have had my biggest concerns recently. Against Elversberg, Bayer were far too open. In Augsburg, a few minutes of defensive chaos nearly threw away a game that had been under control. Against Leipzig, things looked much more mature. Tapsoba and Medina won important duels, Quansah stayed disciplined and Gutiérrez worked just as hard defensively as he did going forward. Leipzig still had moments, but there was none of that sequence of huge spaces, missed assignments and avoidable panic that had been driving me mad.

It was not perfect. Bayer struggled badly in the duels before the break, and Leipzig even had the ball in the net before VAR ruled the goal out for offside. So there is no point pretending the first half was some sort of masterpiece. It was not. But that is exactly why I liked the performance. Bayer survived a difficult spell, did not lose their heads and improved as the game went on. That is what a stable side does. It does not always dominate; sometimes it simply refuses to fall apart.

Schick could even have added a third later on, but by then the result never really felt in danger. No frantic retreat, no needless drama, no late defensive gift. After the last few weeks, it is difficult to overstate how enjoyable that kind of boring can be.

There are signs now of what Carles Martínez wants this side to become. The home performances are looking increasingly convincing, and the Europa League campaign has started with a win as well. There is still plenty to improve, and the away displays remain a useful warning against getting carried away. But against Leipzig, Bayer finally showed exactly what I had been asking for: fewer defensive presents, more concentration and the ability to control a game without needing to produce attacking fireworks every five minutes.

Now comes the long international break, with Mainz waiting afterwards.

If we defend there with the same discipline we showed against Leipzig, I would be perfectly happy for another Bayer match to finish in pleasantly uneventful fashion.