What the papers say: Killjoys from Bielefeld

"Caught cold in heavy rain" – the headline in the Süddeutsche Zeitung refers to a short phrase in the middle of the second half when the rain pouring down on the roof of the BayArena caused a deafening noise. The report continues: "Soaked by a heavy downpour and caught cold by Armenia Bielefeld, the Bayer Leverkusen players sloped off the pitch. Thanks to a deserved 2-1 home defeat against the promoted club, the Werkself slipped down to sixth in the table on Sunday afternoon. It was an unexpected first win for Bielefeld under their new coach Frank Kramer.

The Werkself went into the matchday in fifth place. As Borussia Dortmund were able to win their home game against Hertha Berlin with a 2-0 victory on Saturday night, the team under head coach Peter Bosz dropped down to sixth place – two points behind BVB and four behind fourth-placed Eintracht Frankfurt.

Doan scores opener for Bielefeld

Nadiem Amiri had the best chance in the opening stages after seven minutes but he put his shot wide of the target. Ten minutes later came the thoroughly surprising opening goal for the visitors from East Westphalia: Bielefeld’s Christian Gebauer hit a low cross into the penalty area from the right wing. Ritsu Doan ran past Edmond Tapsoba to the six-yard box and turned the ball into the net with the help of the underside of the bar to make it 1-0.

The following minutes up to the half-time whistle are described by the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger as follows: "Bielefeld could even have increased their lead with the moves of Bayer 04 remaining slow and full of errors. The finishing was no better with the second huge opportunity going begging. Tapsoba had moved up front and he set up Demarai Gray with a header. But the winter signing was denied by an outstanding save from the Arminia goalkeeper Stefan Ortega."

“Goal pulled back too late”

Bosz made attacking changes for the restart bringing on Lucas Alario and Leon Bailey in place of Kerem Demirbay and Gray. But again it was the visitors who went on to score the first goal in the second half: On 57 minutes, the second Japanese player in the DSC squad, Masaya Okugawa, successfully rounded off a Bielefeld counter-attack. The Rheinische Post reports: "The goal pulled back by Patrik Schick (85') came too late. Bayer coach Bosz was suitably disappointed after the third league home game in succession without a win. 'That should never happen to us,' complained the 57-year-old and he emphasised his statement: 'We can't lose against Bielefeld here. That's why I'm so annoyed.'"

The kicker allocated individual marks as usual for the Werkself players. The performance of Jonathan Tah was given a "3.5" and the goalkeeper Lennart Grill a "2.5". And Alario, who came on in the second half, received a "3.5" like Tah.

Arminia move up

The Kölnische Rundschau picks up on a statement by the visitors’ coach in their report: "Head coach Kramer, who was able to celebrate the first goals and first victory in his third game in the dugout for the East Westphalians, said on behalf of his East Westphalian killjoys: 'We did an awful lot right against a good opponent.'"

Meanwhile, the Bild-Zeitung focuses on the new table in relation to the relegation battle following the win for DSC: "Arminia picked up the first three points under new coach Frank Kramer, winning a Bundesliga match for the first time after seven games without a win – and are now above the drop zone. What does the Bielefeld win mean in the relegation battle? Hertha (0-2 at Dortmund) slipped down to the play-off spot for the first time this season. And: Köln (now level on points with Arminia) are also in the thick of it. And the revived Mainz team are coming up from the back (fifth place in the form table in the second half of the season)."