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2013 » February » 4 » Bundesliga wrap: Dortmund edge Leverkusen
Bundesliga wrap: Dortmund edge Leverkusen
Robert Lewandowski struck a 63rd-minute winner as Borussia Dortmund overcame Bayer Leverkusen 3-2 in the Bundesliga on Sunday.
Marco Reus' exquisite finish was followed by a Jakub Blaszczykowski penalty as Dortmund took control of the clash at BayArena. A brace from Stefan Reinartz drew the sides level after the break before Lewandowski's goal, and the visitors held on despite Blaszczykowski missing a late penalty. Despite looking fragile in defence, the champions were at their flowing best going forward and were ahead after just three minutes. Reus broke the offside trap and expertly chipped Bernd Leno after Lewandowski's perfectly weighted through ball. It was 2-0 just moments later after Leno was adjudged to have brought down Lewandowski, and Blaszczykowski made no mistake from the penalty spot. After being frustrated by Dortmund goalkeeper Mitchell Langerak, the hosts eventually found their way back into the game. Stefan Kiessling took on Lukasz Piszczek before crossing for Reinartz to finish from close range. Four minutes later, Leverkusen were level as Reinartz headed in at the back post after Stefan Boenisch squared his header to complete a remarkable comeback. Parity did not last long though, as Philipp Wollscheid's poor back pass was latched onto by Mario Goetze, and although Leno saved his poked effort, he could do nothing to prevent Lewandowski sliding home the rebound. Lewandowski was a constant thorn in Leverkusen's side, and he won his team's second penalty of the match as he got in down the right hand side and forced Boenisch into a foul. Blaszczykowski again stepped up but Leno guessed right and held onto the spot-kick which was struck low to his left, but Dortmund still claimed the three points. The win moves Juergen Klopp's men to within 12 points of league leaders Bayern Munich, while Bayer Leverkusen are third. In the other game on Sunday, Nuremberg moved further clear of the relegation zone with a 2-1 victory over Borussia Moenchengladbach. A Timmy Simons penalty and Tomas Pekhart's strike put Nuremberg ahead inside 30 minutes, with Patrick Herrmann's effort proving nothing more than a consolation. Nuremberg are eight points clear of 16th-placed Hoffenheim, while Moenchengladbach sit in seventh.
