Xabi Alonso's Leverkusen beats Bayern 3-0 to open up 5-point Bundesliga lead

Alex Grimaldo scored as Bayer Leverkusen beat Bayern Munich 2-0 on Saturday to open up a five-point le at top of Bundesliga.

It's carnival season in Rhineland, and Leverkusen fans, many of m in costume, h plenty to celebrate as Xabi Alonso's team proved its title credentials. It was Leverkusen's 31st game this season without a loss in all competitions.

After a kickoff delayed by fan protests , it was a Bayern player who scored first goal — but he wasn't playing for Bayern.

Right back Josip Stanisic, sent out on loan to Leverkusen at start of season, popped up at far post to score off Robert Andrich's low cross in 18th minute after Bayern seemed to be taken by surprise by Leverkusen's quick throw-in routine.

Stanisic put his hands up in apology and barely celebrated his first Bundesliga goal in nearly two years, though his teammates certainly did.

Leverkusen me it 2-0 with an incisive counter early in second half, Grimaldo sprinting down left flank and playing a one-two with Nathan Tella before lofting a shot over goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.

Jeremie Frimpong ded a third in stoppage time into empty net after Neuer h gone up for a Bayern corner.

Harry Kane has scored 24 goals in 20 Bundesliga games since joining Bayern but h few chances to score as Leverkusen squeezed him out of game.

Also Saturday, Union Berlin beat Wolfsburg 1-0 in a game that h repeated interruptions, about 30 minutes in total, as fans threw tennis balls onto field in protest at league's planned investment deal.

referee took players to locker rooms in first half after stoppages to clear away tennis balls thrown by Union fans. When play resumed, re was anor interruption when Wolfsburg fans threw more balls. Long-running protests against German league's plans to sell a stake of revenue to an outside investor have intensified as talks are held with prospective buyers.

Danilho Doekhi heed only goal for Union in 21st minute of first-half stoppage time.

Fifth-place Leipzig drew 2-2 at Augsburg to lose more ground in race for Champions League places. Leipzig has four points from five games since new year.

United States midfielder Lennard Maloney scored his first career Bundesliga goal for Heidenheim in a 2-1 win at Werder Bremen, Eintracht Frankfurt was held to a 1-1 draw by Bochum and Borussia Moenchenglbach and Darmstt played out a 0-0 draw.