BERLIN: Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen extended their lead at the top of the Bundesliga yesterday with a 1-1 draw at fellow high-fliers Stuttgart.
Leverkusen playmaker Florian Wirtz scored a second-half equaliser as the visitors came from behind to steal a point from in-form Stuttgart and strengthen their grip on top spot.
Alonso's side are now four points clear of Bayern Munich at the top of the table, after the champions suffered a shock 5-1 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.
They remain the only club in the league who are still unbeaten this season, having won 11 of their first 14 games.
"It's a point which keeps both Stuttgart and Bayern at arm's length, so it could prove to be really valuable," Leverkusen midfielder Jonas Hofmann told DAZN.
He added that Alonso had raised his voice in the dressing room after a poor first-half showing from Leverkusen.
"He can get louder and more emotional, and he needed to be today because we really slept through the first part of the game."
Bayern's defeat had only increased the excitement around this top-of-the-table clash, and the game lived up to its billing in an enthralling first half.
Stuttgart pinned Leverkusen back for much of the opening exchanges, forcing a string of superb saves from Lukas Hradecky and a desperate goal-line block from Edmond Tapsoba.
Hradecky in particular was imperious, first denying Deniz Undav with a superb dive to his left and then sticking out a leg to stop Serhou Guirassy in a one-on-one.
Leverkusen remained dangerous on the break, with Amine Adli hitting the woodwork and Victor Boniface skewing a shot wide.
But Stuttgart deserved their lead when they finally broke through just before half-time.
Josha Vagnoman unpicked the Leverkusen defence with a darting run into the box from the right, before squaring the ball to an unmarked Chris Fuehrich for a tap-in.
"The best thing about the first half was that we only went 1-0 down. We were much better in the second half," said Alonso.
Alonso's side struck back immediately after the break, Wirtz finding the net with a brilliant first-time finish after Boniface had outmuscled Dan-Axel Zagadou on the left wing.
The equaliser turned the game on its head, and it was Leverkusen who had the better chances in the second half.
Granit Xhaka hit the post with a long-range effort, while Jonathan Tah almost snatched victory with a sweetly-timed half-volley late on.
"I think it was a fair result in the end," said Alonso, whose side face Bayern-beaters Frankfurt next weekend.
Stuttgart, meanwhile, travel to Bayern for their second top-three clash in the space of a week.
In yesterday's other game, both Cologne and Mainz failed to escape the bottom three after battling to a turgid 0-0 draw.
Mainz's Jonathan Burkardt had a second-half goal ruled out for offside, while Cologne's Jan Thielmann hit the post late on.
Yet neither side could force the winner, allowing Union Berlin to leapfrog both of them in the table after their win at home to Borussia Moenchengladbach on Saturday.