Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen 5 Werder Bremen 0
Undefeated Bayer Leverkusen secured their first Bundesliga title on Sunday with a 5-0 victory over Werder Bremen, breaking an 11-year stranglehold on the league by Bayern Munich.
Xabi Alonso's team, who have now gone a league-record 29 matches without defeat this season to secure their first trophy since 1993, have a 16-point lead over Bayern with five matches remaining.
Leverkusen left nothing to chance and sealed their title win at the first opportunity with Florian Wirtz bagging a hat-trick in a win that stretched their unbeaten run across all competitions to a remarkable 43 games this season.
They earned a 24th-minute penalty and Victor Boniface, who only recently came back after a three-month injury break, stepped up to score his first league goal since December and his 11th of the campaign.
Doue dazzles as PSG humble Inter 5-0 to claim first Champions League title
Shamrock Rovers hold the lead as season reaches its halfway point – what we learned from Friday’s League of Ireland
PSG and Inter could thrill us in the Champions League final, but something has already been lost
Dayle Rooney shoots Bohemians back up to third in win over Derry
There were more chances to double their lead in a one-sided first half, with Amine Adli also hitting the woodwork for the hosts.
Werder came out fighting after the break, trying to spoil the party, but Granit Xhaka's missile on the hour from 25 metres out sparked wild celebrations in the stands.
They were not yet done with substitute Wirtz adding another eight minutes later.
The Germany international, gearing up for Euro 2024 on home soil in June, bagged another in the 83rd with impatient fans then briefly running on to the pitch. He completed his hat-trick in the 90th to cap his team’s five-star performance and secure the title in style.
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2024