Heidenheim had lost all five of their home games against the Bundesliga’s top seven this term without scoring a single goal, but the visit of a Leverkusen side hurting after a stunning midweek DFB-Pokal loss to third tier Arminia Bielefeld presented an opportunity to improve their fortunes.
Frank Schmidt’s men were the much more dangerous side in the opening stages here, coming close to an opener when Adrian Beck found space on the inside left, but he was caught in two minds whether to cross or shoot, and in the end, did neither to any effect to the relief of the Leverkusen defence.
Die Werkself weren’t learning their lesson as Frans Kratzig found space down the same flank but could only fire wide, before their biggest scare of the half arrived in the 26th minute. A corner dropped to Benedikt Gimber at the near post, and the centre-back showed tremendous balance to turn and shoot, only to be remarkably denied by the crossbar and then the post.
Talisman Marvin Pieringer then missed a pair of presentable chances, before Heidenheim received an overdue reminder of the visitors’ quality when Amine Adli drilled an effort narrowly wide.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Heidenheim – who had earned fewer points than any other Bundesliga side on their own turf before kick-off – struggled to keep up their attacking intensity after the restart.
However, Xabi Alonso’s men were in no position to capitalise, failing to register a single shot in the opening 25 minutes of the second period.
Top scorer Patrik Schick was brought off the bench as Leverkusen looked to snatch a result their performance hadn’t merited, but it was fellow substitute Buendia who made the telling impact. The Argentine produced a fleeting moment of quality in this contest, curling a gorgeous strike past Kevin Müller.
With this late twist, Leverkusen secured a fourth successive head-to-head win via another trademark late goal, keeping them within six points of leaders Bayern. Heidenheim, meanwhile, lost for the first time in four matches to remain three points adrift of safety.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Frans Kratzig (Heidenheim)
