Luck for Bayer star Granit Xhaka goes off on the referee and only sees yellow

Bayer Leverkusen again fail to win in the Bundesliga, although the defending champions had plenty of chances against Stuttgart. At least the performance gives cause for optimism. And Granit Xhaka is lucky not to be sent off.

The gap at the top of the table could widen further on this matchday, but nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is worried about that. The defending champions are encouraged by their performance in the disappointing 0-0 draw against VfB Stuttgart. "We're not satisfied as far as the result is concerned. But in terms of play, it was certainly the best performance of the season," said midfield boss Granit Xhaka. And the fact that the gap to leaders FC Bayern could widen to seven points at worst? Not a problem for now. "After nine matchdays, no one has yet become champions."

Leverkusen - Stuttgart 0:0Maximum punishment for Nati star: Fabian Rieder substituted and then substituted again

Leverkusen did indeed put in a strong performance against VfB. Especially defensively. For the first time ever in this Bundesliga season, the Werks team did not concede a goal. Offensively, on the other hand, coach Xabi Alonso's team missed a number of top chances. "I think we did enough to get a win," said the Basque. His VfB colleague Sebastian Hoeness confirmed this impression and spoke of a "lucky point" for the Swabians.

Granit Xhaka argues with the referee

After the game, not only the second draw in a row for Bayer Leverkusen was the topic of conversation, but also the yellow card for Granit Xhaka. Shortly after half-time, Leverkusen striker Boniface has the chance to run alone towards the Stuttgart goal, but is held back by Karazor. However, instead of a red card for Stuttgart, the whistle is blown against Leverkusen. The reason: In the previous situation, Florian Wirtz and Mittelstädt collided, with Mittelstädt going to ground. Referee Siebert therefore ruled a foul against Leverkusen.

Xhaka is furious about this. The Swiss grabbed the referee by the arm and protested loudly, as did some of his team-mates. "Is that red?", asks the Bild newspaper after the game, with the headline: "Xhaka short-circuit against referee!" In the end, Siebert shows the national team captain a yellow card (see video at the beginning of the article).

Referee Siebert admits his mistake

Xhaka was visibly annoyed by the referee's decision after the game: "Where should Florian Wirtz go? It's very unfortunate. The referee had a 50:50 situation and decided against us. It's a shame, because there would have been a great chance."

It's not the first time the Swiss captain has been annoyed with referee Siebert. In September, he officiated the match between Switzerland and Denmark. After a red card against Nico Elvedi, Xhaka vented his frustration and was also sent off. "I've never experienced anything like it," he grumbled about the referee's performance at the time and even spoke of a "huge scandal".

This time, Xhaka was at least lucky to escape being sent off again. Possibly also because Siebert admits he made a mistake in the scene with Wirtz and Mittelstädt: "The foul call came a little too late. I actually whistled a foul by Karazor on Boniface myself. I can understand every footballer and the benches when there's unrest. It was a bit homemade," admitted the referee.

However, Leverkusen have little to gain from this: after the Bundesliga games on Saturday (Bayern against Union Berlin and Leipzig at struggling BVB), the gap to the top of the table could widen further.

Difficult tasks in the Champions League

In just a few days, both teams will be back in action in the Champions League. While Stuttgart host Atalanta Bergamo, Leverkusen travel to Alonso's former club Liverpool FC. "Playing in the Champions League at Anfield could hardly be better," said Alonso. "It will be a big challenge for us."

dpa