Bayer Leverkusen drew 2-2 at Qarabag in the Europa League on Thursday, with Patrik Schick scoring in stoppage time to extend their unbeaten run to 35 games.
Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen had not lost all season, but they had to fight back from 2-0 down in their last-16 match in Azerbaijan.
Yassine Benzia and Juninho scored for the home team, whom Leverkusen had beaten twice in the group stages, to lead 2-0 at halftime.
Alonso made eight changes to his starting lineup as his squad, which leads the Bundesliga by ten points, continues to fight across three competitions.
Faced with his first competitive loss since May 2023, the coach shuffled his deck in the second half.
Florian Wirtz equalized with a clever chip with 20 minutes remaining, only 12 minutes after coming in.
Schick, another of Alonso’s substitutions, leveled things up 12 minutes later by heading in a Robert Andrich feed in the second minute of stoppage time.
The draw, Leverkusen’s fifth from 35 matches this season, along with 30 wins, gives Alonso’s team the advantage in next week’s return leg in Germany.