Bayer Leverkusen wins the German Cup thanks to Xhaka’s goal; finishes domestic season undefeated

BERLIN (AP) — Granite

Xhaka struck from long range in the 16th minute. That was enough against second division side Kaiserslautern, even though they were without defender Odilon Kossunou, who would have picked up a second yellow card before the break.

Leverkusen have just won the Bundesliga title and finished the domestic season unbeaten. The only blemish on Xabi Alonso’s team’s record was a 3-0 Europa League final defeat to Atalanta on Wednesday in Dublin. With this, a run of 51 games without defeat in all competitions came to an end. It was their only defeat in 53 games this season.

Alonso and his players ran towards their fans after the final whistle on Sunday at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin. They supported the team in every possible way, although at times they were outnumbered by Kaiserslautern fans.

Before the game, they showed an image of a red devil holding a trophy against a burning background. In addition, the red highlights of the smoke enhanced the effect and gave a hint of what was to come.

Despite the smoke, there was no spark on the field after a difficult season. Cosunu received a red card for trying to stop Kenny Prince Redondo in the third minute and a second for a foul on Boris Tomiak in the 44th minute.

This did not stop the Leverkusen machine, which fought for victory. Jeremie Frimpong came close to making it 2-0 in the 75th match.

This is the second time Leverkusen has won the Cup after beating Hertha Berlin’s reserve team in 1993.