Xabi Alonso believes Bayer Leverkusen delivered their most complete performance in the Bundesliga despite being held to a goalless draw against Stuttgart on Friday.
Leverkusen missed the chance to close the gap at the summit of the league table, despite dominating proceedings at the BayArena throughout.
The hosts twice struck the woodwork in either half through Edmond Tapsoba and Victor Boniface, while Florian Wirtz was denied by a wonderful stop from Alexander Nubel late on.
Leverkusen ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 2.19 compared to Stuttgart's 0.28, further emphasising the superiority they had over their opponents.
The result saw Alonso's side produce their second-highest underperformance in terms of their xG since the Spaniard took over the club in 2022, though the Leverkusen boss was happy with his side's display.
"We are unhappy. We thought we had done enough to win it," Alonso said. "We pressed well. Our players showed a lot of energy to press a lot.
"We created a lot of chances in the first half. But we also had chances in the second half."
"Maybe the most complete performance from us even though we did not score. It was a top game.
"From Monday we focus on Liverpool. A big game, to play in Anfield," said the former Liverpool player.
But Leverkusen's struggles away from home continued. Alonso's side have now just won one of their last five league games, drawing the other four.
They remained third in the Bundesliga table, but are now four points behind RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich, who now both have a game in hand.
"It is still early in the season," Alonso said when asked about the growing gap with the league leaders. "There are enough games. We want to keep going."
Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 St. Pauli: First-half goals give champions third straight win
Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen struck twice in the first half to defeat St. Pauli 2-1.
Heading into the game on the back of a midweek cup win against Bayern Munich, Leverkusen only took six minutes to lead as Florian Wirtz fired in from a superb Granit Xhaka pass.
Leverkusen, without Victor Boniface and Patrik Schick, then doubled their lead in the 21st minute when defender Jonathan Tah was left unmarked at the far post to head in.
St. Pauli needed 30 minutes to get their first effort at goal and struggled to find openings against a solid Leverkusen defence.
But the visitors did set up a nervous ending to the game when they pulled a goal back in the 84th minute through Morgan Guilavogui.
Leverkusen now have 26 points from 13 matches as they sit in third place - seven points behind leaders Bayern, while St. Pauli are just above the danger zone with 11 points.
Data Debrief: Hat-trick of wins for Leverkusen
It is the first time this season that reigning champions Leverkusen have won three games in a row in the Bundesliga.
They have not been totally free-flowing this campaign and it was a similar story on Saturday. Xabi Alonso's side only had an xG of 0.92 at the end of 90 minutes, recording just six shots.
Their opponents, meanwhile, generated an xG of 1.42 with six more shots than the home side and four shots on target - two more than Leverkusen.
Despite that, Leverkusen maintained their excellent record against St. Pauli, having now not tasted defeat in their last 11 competitive home games against them (W7 D4). Their only defeat at home to St. Pauli came all the way back in their first-ever meeting in 1976.
West Ham confirms Antonio in stable condition following motor vehicle accident
West Ham United have confirmed that Reggae Boyz striker Michail Antonio is in stable condition following a road traffic accident on Saturday.
“Michail is conscious and communicating and is currently under close supervision at a central London Hospital,” the Premier League club communicated on X Saturday afternoon.
The news of Antonio’s accident earlier today sparked concern among fans and the footballing community, with many offering their own messages of support for the player, who has been a key figure for both club and country.
“At this difficult time, we kindly ask everyone to respect the privacy of Michail and his family,” the statement added.
The club will issue no further comments today but will issue a further update soon.
Bruno Guimaraes wants Newcastle to put defence first after Brentford loss
Newcastle's winless run stretched to four Premier League games as Eddie Howe's side lost 4-2 away at Brentford on Saturday.
As the hosts maintained their unbeaten home record in league action this season, the full-time whistle drew frustration and more questions for the Magpies, who failed to break the Bees down in the closing stages.
A chaotic first half saw four goals fly in at a windy Gtech Community Stadium, as Newcastle twice came from behind, via Alexander Isak and Harvey Barnes before the break.
Their defensive fragility, however, was punished after the restart, as Nathan Collins prodded home, as the visitors defence failed to deal with a punted free kick into their penalty area from Mark Flekken.
As Howe's charges pushed for a third equaliser late on, their ragged back line was exposed again, as Kevin Schade raced through to slot home a clinching goal.
Captain Bruno Guimaraes offered no excuses at full time as the Brazil international struggled to explain why his team are struggling against direct attacks this season.
"It's very disappointing. In the first half we had some good moments, but after the third goal we lost our way, we lost control," he told PLP, via BBC Sport.
"We have always been reactive, we need to concede a goal to score one ourselves. We never score first, we concede a lot of goals, this cannot happen. We have to find a way to be consistent.
"After we conceded the third goal, we became a mess, gave the ball away a lot, and we were punished. We have to turn things around. Last season we had one of the best defences in the league, now we concede a lot. It's about the whole team, we have to find a way not to concede."
Guimaraes' frustration is backed up by some concerning recent defensive numbers for Newcastle, with no clean sheet in their last five league games, and 11 goals conceded.
However, the doom and gloom for Newcastle was in sharp contrast to a buoyant Thomas Frank, who saw his side record a fifth successive home Premier League win.
The Danish boss hailed the resilience of his players, and singled out goalscorers Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa for praise, as the duo moved onto nine Premier League goals each in 2024/25.
"I'm very happy, it was a great performance in many ways. The way we performed today physically, and with quality against a very good Newcastle side, I'm very proud of my players.
"Wissa, the way he links up and goes forward, and gets behind the back line for tap ins. Bryan Mbeumo today was unplayable. The way he holds the ball up and links play, as he did to Kevin Schade [for the fourth goal] was very impressive."
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