Birthday boy Engelhardt strikes as Gladbach and Leverkusen settle for a draw | OneFootball

Yannik Engelhardt fired the hosts into an early lead, only for a Philipp Sander own goal to restore parity just before half-time. Despite Leverkusen’s dominance of possession throughout, both sides largely cancelled each other out in the second half, settling for a point apiece.

Leverkusen controlled the opening exchanges in terms of the ball, but Gladbach were content to cede possession and look to strike on the counter. Eugen Polanski’s game plan paid dividends inside ten minutes, as the Foals pressed high to force a mistake from Janis Blaswich. A loose pass allowed Engelhardt to rob Aleix García before reacting quickest in the box to convert Haris Tabaković’s saved effort, the midfielder marking his 25th birthday with the opener.

Gladbach continued to press aggressively and frustrate their visitors, and looked set to take their slender advantage into the interval. However, Leverkusen found a fortuitous equaliser on the stroke of half-time. Malik Tillman beat his man down the right and cut the ball back to García, whose hopeful strike from the edge of the area deflected off Philipp Sander’s outstretched leg and into the net, sending both sides in level at the break.

The second half followed a similar pattern, with Leverkusen monopolising possession but struggling to create clear-cut chances. Remarkably, as the match passed the hour mark, Kasper Hjulmand’s side had yet to register a shot on target. Tempers briefly flared on 68 minutes following a touchline scuffle, resulting in yellow cards for players on both sides and injecting some much-needed bite into proceedings.

Gladbach came closest to regaining the lead in the 78th minute. Kevin Stöger drove into the box and pulled the ball back for Jens Castrop, but the 22-year-old arrived a fraction late and blazed over from close range with the goal gaping - a significant let-off for Leverkusen.

Kasper Hjulmand’s side responded by ringing the changes in search of a late winner, but their frustrations were summed up by Alejandro Grimaldo’s speculative effort from distance as the clock ticked towards full time. After five minutes of added time, the referee brought proceedings to a close with the scoreline unchanged.

Gladbach remain winless in five matches and sit just three points above the relegation play-off place. Leverkusen’s winning run comes to an end, although they move up to fifth place - temporarily at least.