The 6-2 win was a fine display that deserved to be celebrated, but it also drove home how far short they have fallen

The Bundesliga loves a left turn, and this weekend it saved its best one for the programme’s final fixture. This was supposed to be resurgent Werder Bremen’s day, when victory would have taken them into second place behind Borussia Dortmund, confirming a return to relevance in the extraordinary debut year at the helm of coach Florian Kohfeldt, who celebrates a year in charge on Tuesday.

With just over an hour gone it looked like it still could be, even though they had gone into the break 3-0 down to visiting Bayer Leverkusen. Yuya Osako’s goal, eventually awarded after VAR intervention, reduced the deficit to 3-2, following 40-year-old substitute Claudio Pizarro’s strike, his 193rd in the Bundesliga, which made him the second-oldest scorer in the competition’s history, behind Mirko Votava – also of Werder – in 1996.

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Their window of opportunity proved fleeting, snapped shut first by Kai Havertz, young enough to be Pizarro’s son, and then by a pair of own goals by the unfortunate Sebastian Langkamp, as their chances were dashed in the most Bundesliga fashion possible, blown away on the counter-attack while overcommitting their resources forward.

It was by some distance Leverkusen’s best performance of a tricky season, and it couldn’t have arrived at a more opportune moment for coach Heiko Herrlich. His Friday press conference was a tense affair, despite Herrlich’s stiff upper lip demeanour. He talked about showing his players “the mentality we need to steer the ship”, acknowledging that the club didn’t want to find itself “going in the same direction as two years ago”, when a brush with relegation trouble under Tayfun Korkut led to a reset on and off the pitch that gave Herrlich his chance in the first place.

The elephant in the room was Leverkusen’s form, capped by the previous night’s Europa League defeat at FC Zürich. It was a performance as well as a result that underlined the team’s fragility, even against supposedly inferior opposition, and it took their goals against tally to an alarming 22 in 11 games. Some reports suggested Herrlich would already have gone weeks before had there been a viable alternative, with former Leipzig coach Ralph Hasenhüttl apparently having given Die Werkself the brush-off, for now at least.

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It’s often felt as if this is Herrlich’s lot, not entirely trusted by either board or supporters, continuing in the absence of anything better. A modern-day version of Jens Keller’s Schalke reign, if you like. Keller’s autumn removal four years ago in favour of Roberto Di Matteo might serve as a reminder that the grass isn’t always greener, quite apart from the fact Herrlich’s team only missed out on the Champions League on goal difference last term, the beginning of which had been marked by the exit of a clutch of senior players.

Still, the visit to Bremen had been described as “all or nothing” for him by Rheinische Post’s Dorian Audersch and he wasn’t alone. Werder’s reshuffle to a back three in the absence of Niklas Moisander – something which caused a pre-match sinking feeling among many home fans – certainly offered some encouragement to Leverkusen but they grabbed it with both hands. This was very much the ‘all’ scenario.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Sebastian Langkamp after one of his own goals. Photograph: Patrik Stollarz/AFP/Getty Images

Herrlich was too modest to talk about it afterwards – or to point out that he had rolled with the punches when injury and illness forced off Karim Bellarabi and Lars Bender, respectively – but his daring switch to 3-4-3 was hugely influential, as Leverkusen consistently overwhelmed Werder on the counter-attack, with the pressing of the indefatigable Kevin Volland crucial. Volland struck the opener, created the third for a vastly-improved Bellarabi before half-time and then laid on the fourth for Havertz just as the hosts were threatening to complete their comeback. Leverkusen may have ended up having to win the game twice, but they did so with real panache.

Unsurprisingly in the circumstances, the bubbling tension of recent days boiled over after full-time. Long-serving Leverkusen general manager Rudi Völler vented his frustrations towards Sky reporter Patrick Wasserziehr, who he claimed asked Herrlich about his future “25 times” in his flash interview immediately following full-time. “I have known Patrick Wasserziehr for years and I like him,” ranted Völler. “But I can’t hear this anymore. Week after week it’s the same questions. I can’t understand it and I’m very disappointed with him.”

On one hand, Völler’s annoyance at the focus shifting from his team finally clicking into gear was understandable. This was a fine performance that deserved to be celebrated. On the other, the dash of this Leverkusen display simply drove home the point of how far short they have fallen of expectation. It was not a point lost on the players.

“We don’t want to do this once every eight weeks,” said Julian Brandt, scorer of the second goal and, along with Havertz, the talent that makes this team so full of potential, “but regularly, preferably in the Pokal in Gladbach.” Leverkusen make the short trip to face Dieter’s Hecking’s side on Wednesday, in a competition that should be one of the club’s main priorities this season. With Hoffenheim visiting on Saturday, there is a clear chance for Herrlich to lead himself and his team out of the woods. For the coach to truly convince, however, will take a lot more than bringing a ray of sunshine to a cold Sunday night on the Weser.

Talking points

• Dortmund remain on top and unbeaten but only picked up one point at home to Hertha Berlin. Two goals for Salomon Kalou (his first of the season, both overdue and deserved after an industrious start to the campaign), capped by a last-ditch penalty equaliser, earned Pal Dardai’s team a draw after Jadon Sancho’s double. The English teenager also had a delightful backheel ruled out for a marginal offside against Marco Reus, who set it up. Reus later called his team’s failure to close it out “naive”, while the afternoon was marred by clashes between visiting supporters and the police.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Dortmund fans and Jadon Sancho after his first goal. Photograph: Leon Kuegeler/Reuters

• Bayern, then, close to within two points of the summit after a third straight away win, albeit at struggling Mainz and with a far from convincing performance. Thomas Müller acknowledged at full-time to Sky that “we can’t fly through our games and through the league at the moment” and “we can’t complain about victories” in the current situation.

• Starts don’t come much worse than that endured by new Stuttgart coach Markus Weinzierl, who suffered a second 4-0 reverse in two games, at Hoffenheim. His team did their best to hang on but after Emiliano Insùa was sent off for a high boot inside the first 10 minutes it was always a matter of time.

• Finally, three cheers for Freiburg, who beat Borussia Mönchengladbach on Friday to record an eighth win in 11 unbeaten home meetings with their favourite opponents, a victory notable for Lucas Höler’s clincher from halfway.

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Höler with the dagger from the halfway line! 🗡 pic.twitter.com/wbWVAMhNHm