Bayer 4-0 Bochum: Super-sub Victor Boniface and Schick lead Leverkusen to historic victory

It was a special night for Bayer Leverkusen and Patrik Schick as they defeated VFL Bochum to make German football history with Victor Boniface as a substitute.

Schick scored his first Bundesliga goal in 304 days and his first hattrick in over two years as Bayer Leverkusen extended their unbeaten run to an unprecedented 25 matches after a 4-0 defeat of Bochum at the BayArena.

With their Nigerian star set to miss up to five matches due to the AFCON2023 next month, Xabi Alonso rested his star striker alongside some of the other African stars against Bochum.

It turned out to be a night for Boniface’s replacement, Schick, as he proved to be the star of the show against the poor Bochum side with a 16th-minute hat-trick.

The 27-year-old, in his first start, opened the scoring from the spot kick after he was fouled by the visiting goalkeepers. 

Schick dusted himself to convert from the spot, his first goal in the Bundesliga in over two years.

After a shaky start to the game, that goal opened up the floodgate as the fit-again forward added two more goals for his first hat trick in 14 months for the club.

Despite resting some key stars, Xabi Alonso’s men were comfortable and convincing on the night before their contributor-in-chief, Boniface, and another African star, Edmond Tapsoba, were introduced in the 67th minute.

A few seconds after he replaced Schick, Boniface joined the act when he made it 4-0 to Leverkusen.

With the win, Leverkusen confirmed their position as winter champions, four points clear of defending champions, Bayern Munich.

Additionally, Bayer Leverkusen’s win also sees them extend their unbeaten start to the season to an extraordinary 25, the longest run ever in German football history. 22 wins, three draws and 81 goals scored across competitions.