Bundesliga title beckons for Bayern after holding defending champ Leverkusen scoreless

BERLIN (AP) — Bayern Munich might have won the Bundesliga with a draw.

Bayer Leverkusen did everything but score as Bayern held on for a 0-0 draw that kept it eight points clear at the top of the German league on Saturday.

Bayern was pegged back for the whole game but Leverkusen — with center forwards Patrik Schick and Victor Boniface watching from the substitutes’ bench — failed to score for the second consecutive game.

“We're satisfied with the result. Let's just say that,” Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer said after a busy game.

Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso sent Schick on only in the second minute of stoppage time, after star player Florian Wirtz went agonizingly close to winning the match when he shot just wide of the left post after Neuer saved Amine Adli’s effort.

Bayern failed to manage a single shot on target for the whole game. It's only the second time on record, according to statistician Opta, which said the other time was against Wolfsburg in May 2008.

Leverkusen, the defending champion, twice hit the crossbar in the first half.

It was the fifth time Alonso, a former Bayern player, faced his former team as a coach in the Bundesliga and the fifth time he remained unbeaten. His team also knocked Bayern out of the German Cup earlier this season.

“It could be better,” Alonso said, "but there are still 12 games in the Bundesliga.”

Georgios Masouras scored twice in two minutes for bottom club Bochum to upset Borussia Dortmund 2-0 in their derby.

Masouras stunned the visitor with his first goal for Bochum since his winter switch from Olympiakos, then capitalized almost straight away on a huge error from Dortmund defender Niklas Süle to grab his second in the first half.

Süle, who made his first start since December after recovering from an ankle injury, sent a back pass straight into Masouras’ path for the Greek forward to fire the ball past Gregor Kobel in the Dortmund goal.

Bochum’s win lifted the team off the bottom till Sunday at least, pending fellow struggler Holstein Kiel’s visit to Eintracht Frankfurt.

It was the second defeat in as many Bundesliga games for Dortmund under new coach Niko Kovać. Dortmund stayed 11th and risked falling further behind in its quest for Champions League qualification.

Bochum had a host of injuries with four important players including first-choice goalkeeper all out.

Stuttgart failed to capitalize on Leipzig’s draw in Augsburg the night before as it lost at home to Wolfsburg 2-1 despite substitute Nick Woltemade’s wonderful opener in the 72nd minute.

Leipzig remained fourth, while Stuttgart dropped two points off the last place for Champions League qualification.

Borussia Mönchengladbach won at Union Berlin 2-1, and Freiburg won at St. Pauli 1-0 thanks to a late own goal from Philipp Treu.

AP Sports Writer James Ellingworth contributed from Leverkusen.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Bayern's Harry Kane, centre, in action during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Bayern's Jamal Musiala, bottom, challenges for the ball with Leverkusen's Granit Xhaka during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Bayern's Michael Olise, left, controls the ball ahead Leverkusen's Exequiel Palacios during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Referee Samuel Barrott shows a yellow card to Bayern's Aleksandar Pavlovic during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Referee Samuel Barrott shows a yellow card to Bayern's Aleksandar Pavlovic during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Bayern's Harry Kane receives medical attention during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern Munich in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (Marius Becker/dpa via AP)

Bayern's Harry Kane reacts injured during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and FC Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (Marius Becker/dpa via AP)

Dortmund's goalkeeper Gregor Kobel during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and Borussia Dortmund in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

Dortmund's Nico Schlotterbeck points during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and Borussia Dortmund in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

Bochum's head coach Dieter Hecking gestures during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and Borussia Dortmund in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

Dortmund's head coach Niko Kovac arrives for the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and Borussia Dortmund in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

Bochum's Georgios Masouras celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and Borussia Dortmund in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

Bochum's Tim Oermann, left, and Dortmund's Jamie Gittens, right, challenge for the ball during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and Borussia Dortmund in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

Bochum's Georgios Masouras celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and Borussia Dortmund in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

LONDON (AP) — Actor--comedian Russell Brand arrived at a London court on Friday to face charges of rape and sexual assault involving four women.

Brand, 49, was swarmed by photographers as he arrived at Westminster Magistrates’ Court for his first hearing since being charged last month.

As police tried to control the scrum, a man shouted “No one is above the law, Russell Brand!”

Brand faces one count of rape, one of indecent assault, one of oral rape and two of sexual assault. The alleged offenses took place between 1999 and 2005 — one in the English seaside town of Bournemouth and the other three in the Westminster area of central London.

In September 2023, British media outlets Channel 4 and the Sunday Times published claims by four women of being sexually assaulted or raped by Brand. The accusers have not been identified.

The comedian, author and “Get Him To The Greek” actor has been interviewed by police about the allegations, which he denies.

Brand has denied engaging in “non-consensual activity.”

Known for his unbridled and risqué standup routines, Brand hosted shows on radio and television and wrote memoirs charting his battles with drugs and alcohol. He has appeared in several Hollywood movies and was briefly married to pop star Katy Perry between 2010 and 2012.

In recent years, Brand has largely disappeared from mainstream media but has built up a large following online with videos mixing wellness and conspiracy theories. He recently said he had moved to the United States.

Actor--comedian Russell Brand arrives at Westminster Magistrates' court in London, Friday, May 2, 2025, to face charges of rape and sexual assault involving four women. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)