Leipzig shock Bremen late in Bundesliga

BERLIN: Leipzig bolstered their chances for a European spot after the Bulls scored twice late in the match to secure a 2-1 comeback victory over Werder Bremen, concluding the 32nd round.

Both sides experienced a slow start to the encounter, so spectators had to wait until the 20th minute when Timo Werner unleashed the first threatening shot on target, reports Xinhua.

Werner continued to make an impact as he crossed the ball into the path of Mohamed Simakan, who headed just wide at the half-hour mark.

Dominik Szoboszlai nearly opened the scoring before the break, but his free kick struck the outside of the post.

Werder finally came to life after the restart, with Romano Schmid collecting a loose ball before narrowly missing from a promising position ten minutes into the second half.

Bremen stayed active and tested Leipzig's defense as Marvin Ducksch capitalized on Mitchell Weiser's build-up work before challenging Leipzig goalkeeper Janis Blaswich from close range at the hour mark.

The hosts believed they had scored against the run of play, but Christopher Nkunku's goal was disallowed due to a preceding foul by Simakan.

Bremen stunned Leipzig with their next attack at the opposite end of the pitch as Leonardo Bittencourt tapped home Jens Stage's whipped cross to the far post with 70 minutes gone.

Leipzig pressed relentlessly for the draw and reaped the rewards in the 87th minute when Willi Orban headed home the equalizer at the back post following Nkunku's cross.

The Bulls continued their offensive push and astonished Bremen with the 2-1 win in injury time as Nkunku weaved through the visitors' territory before passing to Szoboszlai, who poked home the winner from close range.

"Leipzig threw every man up front, and we failed to salvage one point. If you want to win against a club like Leipzig, you must be focused for over 90 minutes," said Bremen coach Ole Werner.

"It was a challenging game against a well-defending Bremen team. We lacked precision overall, but I believe we secured a deserved victory today," said Leipzig coach Marco Rose.

Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen played out a 1-1 draw with relegation-threatened Stuttgart.