Leverkusen stay in hunt, Bayern braced for failure

Leverkusen kept up the pressure on second-placed Mainz with a 3-2 win over Cologne on Sunday while Bayern Munich coach Louis van Gaal conceded his side may have already lost the Bundesliga title race to Dortmund.

Leverkusen stay third in the table as goals by Patrick Helmes, Swiss midfielder Tranquillo Barnetta and defender Stefan Reinartz sealed the win which leaves them just a point behind Mainz.

With Germany star Michael Ballack set to return from injury in January, Leverkusen are in touch with the leaders with two league games left before the winter break.

But Dortmund can finish the weekend 10 points clear at the top if they beat Nuremberg later on Sunday, a prospect which forced van Gaal to admit that the title race may already be over – five months before the end of the season.

Second-placed Mainz blew their chance to close the gap on Saturday as they suffered their fourth defeat in their last six games when they were beaten 2-1 by Eintracht Frankfurt.

Van Gaal says Mainz’s defeat has only served to strengthen Dortmund’s position.

“Lots might still happen but I think (Dortmund) are too far ahead,” van Gaal said after his Bavarian giants went down 2-0 at Schalke 04 on Saturday.

“We had to win this match to put the pressure on Dortmund. But with us and (second-placed) Mainz losing, Dortmund aren’t feeling any pressure at all,” the Dutchman added.

Bayern are now languishing seventh in the table while their rare win leaves Schalke 15th.

On Saturday, Real Madrid target Edin Dzeko fired a second-half penalty over the bar as Steve McClaren’s Wolfsburg were held to a goalless draw at home by Werder Bremen.

The striker is believed to be a Real target to replace the injured Gonzalo Higuain in the winter transfer window with German daily Bild claiming Madrid are ready to table 25 million euros (33.5 million US dollars) for the Bosnian.

But the 24-year-old, who has scored nine league goals this season, fired his penalty over the bar on 77 minutes just minutes after Bremen captain Torsten Frings had also missed a spot-kick with Wolfsburg goalkeeper Diego Benaglio making the save.

The result leaves Bremen 10th and Wolfsburg 13th after they suffered their fourth-straight league draw.

Hanover are fourth after they won 2-1 at bottom side Borussia Moenchengladbach, who were reduced to 10 men after Argentina’s Raul Bobadilla was sent off at the end of the first-half for kicking an opponent.

A bizarre goal by Freiburg’s Papiss Cisse after just three minutes sealed his side’s 1-0 win over Hamburg as the Senegal striker scored his 11th goal of the season when he hit both posts before finally stabbing the ball home.

VfB Stuttgart were held to a 1-1 draw by 10 man Hoffenheim.