Hoffenheim came from behind to secure a 2-1 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in their opening match of the 2025-26 Bundesliga season, handing Erik ten Hag a losing start at the BayArena.
Leverkusen began strongly, with Jarell Quansah heading home Alejandro Grimaldo’s free-kick just six minutes into his Bundesliga debut.
However, Hoffenheim responded through Fisnik Asllani, who cleverly evaded Quansah in the box to fire past Mark Flekken and level the score in the 25th minute.
The visitors took the lead early in the second half when a long ball from Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann caught Leverkusen’s defense off guard.
Asllani set up Tim Lemperle, who struck into the bottom-left corner from the edge of the box, completing the turnaround.
Leverkusen pressed for an equaliser, with Nathan Tella coming closest when his strike rattled the side-netting in the 78th minute, but Hoffenheim held firm to claim the three points.
The result marked a significant turnaround for Hoffenheim, who had lost their last five Bundesliga encounters with Leverkusen.
Asllani played a pivotal role in the win, registering the most shots (three), joint-most chances created (two), and completing eight passes in the final third.
Despite the game producing few clear-cut opportunities,reflected in xG figures of 0.65 for Leverkusen and 0.57 for Hoffenheim, it was the visitors who capitalised on their chances.
Meanwhile, Leverkusen have now gone four Bundesliga matches without a win, their longest winless run since April/May 2023.