A one-man show by Brazilian playmaker Diego, who scored two goals and set up the other, was enough for strugglers VfL Wolfsburg to beat Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 on Sunday with their second win in three games.
Wolfsburg, who seem to have bounced back since the sacking of coach Felix Magath late last month, also snapped their opponents’ seven-game unbeaten run.
Diego, who won the Europa League on loan at Atletico Madrid last season but was left on the bench by Magath, curled in a stunning 23-metre free kick after four minutes and notched his third goal in three games from close range after a layoff from Dutchman Bas Dost in the 16th. Dost grabbed one for himself after the roles were reversed and Diego started the move with a delightful chip to charging Marcel Schaefer who cut back for the forward.
Stefan Kiessling pulled one back in stoppage time for his seventh goal of the season. Wolfsburg’s win lifted them to the relegation playoff spot with Leverkusen dropping to fifth on 18 points with their first league defeat since mid-September. Leaders Bayern Munich, on 30, protected a seven-point lead at the top with a 2-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday. Second-placed Schalke 04 beat Werder Bremen 2-1 to move up to 23.