Schalke 04 and Bayer Leverkusen played out a 1-1 draw on Sunday but one of the main talking points was the 60th minute incident which threatened to boil over, leading to a flurry of yellow cards being handed out by referee Daniel Siebert.
The hosts played the ball out after Can Bozdogan fell to the ground injured, but from the throw-in Leverkusen’s Lucas Alario made a play on the return pass as the Schalke defenders allow it to roll to goalkeeper Alexander Nubel.
Alario got there first but Nubel saved his corner, forcing the ball out for a corner, but ushering in a major melee between the two sides with the Leverkusen forward along with Schalke’s Daniel Caligiuri and Weston McKennie all booked.
Leverkusen’s Kerem Demirkay eventually played the corner out for a goal kick, but the scuffle was a major sour note.
“It was an intense game and it was clear who the favourite was,” Schalke boss David Wagner said, declining to be drawn on the incident.
“One side opted to fight hard, defend well, close gaps and play on the break the other wanted to play football and have a lot of possession.”
Schalke had led 1-0 thanks to Caligiuri’s 51st minute spot kick, but Juan Miranda’s 81st minute own goal cost them victory.
Wagner, though, was content to collect a point against a top four contender, given his side have only managed two points from six games since the restart.
“I’m definitely happy with the way the lads fought today,” Wagner said.
“We showed that we are sticking together despite the tough situation.”
Kai Havertz returned from injury for Leverkusen and played 70 minutes but couldn’t spark the visitors, much to coach Peter Bosz’s disappointment.
“We did not play very well today,” he said. “We not only created few chances, we generally played poorly today.”