Bayer Leverkusen missed a chance to regain the Bundesliga lead
Sunday by losing 3-2 at lowly Nuremberg for its first defeat of the
season.
Nuremberg took a 3-0 lead early in the second half before
Leverkusen fought back with two goals within seven minutes.
But it was not enough as Leverkusen remained on 50 points
from 25 rounds for third place, three points behind leader Bayern
Munich.
Eric Maxim Coupo-Moting scored in the 42nd and 45th minutes
to give Nuremberg a 2-0 lead at the break, before Mikael Tavares
added the third in the 55th as Nuremberg climbed out of the
relegation zone.
Stefan Kiessling pulled a goal back for Leverkusen in the
66th minute and Patrick Helmes made it 3-2 seven minutes later with
his first goal of the season.
"We just woke up too late," Leverkusen playmaker Toni Kroos.
"We tried everything we could at the end, but it was not enough.
They took the two-goal lead early on and it was tough to come
back."
Nuremberg jumped to 15th place with 21 points, one point from
the drop zone.
"We are not out of the relegation fight yet," Nuremberg coach
Dieter Hecking said. "It's still very close and we will have a
fight the rest of the season."
Hoffenheim were hosting Mainz later Sunday.
