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Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso is pictured before the German Bundesliga soccer match between FC St. Pauli and Bayer Leverkusen at the Millerntor Stadium. Christian Charisius/dpa
Bayer Leverkusen's chances of defending the Bundesliga title all but ended in a 1-1 draw at St Pauli, and they could then also face a rebuild in summer.
The result saw Leverkusen slip eight points behind Bayern Munich with four games left, and striker Patrik Schick readily admitted to streaming portal DAZN: "We must be honest, the chance is gone."
Coach Xabi Alonso said that "the season isn't over yet" but conceded that "there were too many draws" which cost them precious points.
No 2023-24 repeat
But it was also very hard in the first place to replicate the almost perfect 2023-24 season, in which they historically won the Bundesliga and German Cup double unbeaten, and their only defeat across all competitions came in the Europa League final against Atalanta.
"Last year we would have won games like this. The way we are playing at the moment is not the way we want to," goalkeeper and captain Lukas Hradecky said after the latest setback.
But he added: "Second place is not bad either. We have to stay grounded. The last season was unbelievable."
Managing director for sport Simon Rolfes agreed that the runner-up spot was a good result as well but also urged that "we must get a different kind of drive and simply show our quality up front again."
Big question marks on Alonso, Wirtz, Tah to leave
That would also be important for the next campaign amid big question marks on who will be there in August.
Centre back Jonathan Tah confirmed on Sunday that he will leave after 10 years when his contract expires on June 30, with Barcelona and Bayern reportedly interested in the German international.
Asked whether the four remaining Bundesliga games would be his last for the club, Tah said "yes". He added "that the club knows it."
Coach Xabi Alonso, the mastermind of the team's stunning success, has a contract until 2026 but speculation about moving on to Real Madrid, where he formerly played, has gained plenty of momentum since Real crashed out of the Champions League and the future of Carlo Ancelotti is uncertain there.
In addition, it is not clear whether gifted playmaker Florian Wirtz will stay for another year or leave for Bayern or another European top side.
Goal drought, defeats and draws
Losing Germany player Wirtz would be a big blow for Leverkusen, who had a first difficult phase in October/November but rebounded with 11 straight wins in all competitions before too many hiccups in late winter and spring.
They were ousted by Bayern in the Champions League without scoring a goal and went out of the German Cup against third division Arminia Bielefeld.
Their famous attack stalled in a 2-0 home defeat against Werder Bremen (who they routed 6-0 last year to clinch the title) and there were also 0-0 draws at Wolfsburg as well as against Bayern and Union Berlin.
As a result, they trail Bayern by 29 goals as well, with an ankle injury of Wirtz also not helping their cause. Wirtz only returned into the starting 11 on Sunday after almost two months.
Bayern could clinch Saturday
The title race will be over for good on Saturday if they fail to beat stubborn Augsburg, who rarely concede, and Bayern win against Mainz.
Leverkusen had 25 wins and five draws at this stage of the season last year, while the haul is now 18 wins, 10 draws and two defeats.
"We're not in the flow and aren't playing the attacking football that used to make us so strong," Hradecky said.
"But we have to and will keep going until the end."
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