Defending champions Bayern Munich were held to a 1-1 draw at Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday evening to find themselves lagging 14 points behind Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund.
With top side Dortmund earlier coming from behind to win 2-1 at SC Freiburg to pick up their 11th league win from 13 games, Bayern are leaving themselves a considerable gap to bridge with more than a third of the season now played.
Bayern are up to eighth in the league, while Leverkusen are third.
PHOTO: AFP
“The point is OK, but we could have won,” Bayern goal-scorer Mario Gomez said.
Gomez was left kicking himself after missing a late chance, while Bastian Schweinsteiger had a header disallowed for offside after just two minutes.
Munich took the lead when national players Thomas Mueller, the top-scorer at the World Cup, Schweinsteiger and Gomez combined for a dream goal.
Mueller lobbed in a cross from the flank, Schweinsteiger, who led Germany in the goalless draw against Sweden in midweek, chipped Leverkusen goalkeeper Rene Adler and striker Gomez volleyed into the net on 34 minutes.
It was Gomez’s fifth league goal in four games and his eighth this season, but Leverkusen drew level when Bayern’s Croatia defender Danijel Pranjic brought down midfielder Stanley Sam on the edge of the penalty area in first-half stoppage-time and Chile striker Arturo Vidal fired home the 47th-minute spot-kick.
Earlier, Bundesliga leaders Dortmund came from behind to earn a 2-1 win at title rivals Freiburg to keep their seven-point lead over second-placed FSV Mainz 05, who ended their three-game losing streak.
The winner came on 78 minutes when Freiburg defender Mensur Mujdza slid the ball into his own net as Dortmund attacked in waves to seal their 11th win from 13 league games.
Mainz are back up to second after they also fought back with a 3-2 win over Borussia Moenchengladbach.
Schalke 04 hammered fellow Champions League side Werder Bremen 4-0 as former Spain and Real Madrid striker Raul scored a hat-trick.
The win leaves Schalke 14th and Bremen 11th.
Hannover 96 are fourth after their 3-2 win at Hamburg SV, while TSG 1899 Hoffenheim are fifth after they enjoyed a 4-0 win at Eintracht Frankfurt. Kaiserslautern won 3-1 at Nuremberg.
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