Boniface is back as Leverkusen keeps the pressure on Bayern Munich with 3-1 win over Hoffenheim

LEVERKUSEN, Germany (AP) — Bayer Leverkusen kept pace with Bundesliga leader Bayern Munich by beating Hoffenheim 3-1 on Sunday when Victor Boniface made his long-awaited comeback.

Boniface scored with his first shot at goal since his proposed move to Saudi team Al-Nassr collapsed. The Nigeria forward started for his first game since early November after recovering from a thigh injury.

“He needs game time. He's focused and we need him for the second half of the season. We need the whole squad,” Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso said of Boniface, who played the first half before making way for Patrik Schick before the second.

Leverkusen finished with 10 players after Álex Grimaldo’s sending off with half an hour to play. New signings Emiliano Buendía and Mario Hermoso made their debuts as Alonso’s team stayed six points behind Bayern two weeks before the top two clash in Leverkusen.

Bayern defeated Holstein Kiel on Saturday.

Boniface scored in the 15th minute with a shot that Hoffenheim ’keeper Luca Philipp should arguably have stopped.

Jeremie Frimpong made it 2-0 four minutes later after Aleix García sent the Dutch wing back through.

Then Robin Braun became the first referee to announce a VAR call to fans in a Bundesliga game when a penalty he awarded to Nathan Tella for a foul by Hoffenheim defender David Jurasek was taken back — video replays showed the Leverkusen attacker was coming from an offside position before he was fouled.

Leverkusen’s match was among five in the 20th round trialing the NFL-style announcements, a change league officials hope will make the much-maligned VAR system more popular among fans.

“Honestly, I'm relieved that everything worked out. There were no slip-ups and hopefully it brought the benefits that were desired,” Braun told broadcaster DAZN.

Buendía, who went on for the injured Tella before the break, surged through the Hoffenheim defense only to see his shot saved by Philipp, but Schick was there to tuck away the rebound for 3-0 in the 51st. It was the Czech forward's 14th league goal of the season.

Then Grimaldo was shown red in the 61st, when Hoffenheim substitute Gift Orban went on for the visitors. Orban pulled a goal back a minute later.

Buendía made way for Hermoso to compensate for Grimaldo’s sending off. Though tempers flared at times, Leverkusen’s 10 men contained the visitors for the rest of the game.

Leverkusen next hosts local rival Cologne in the quarterfinals of the German Cup on Wednesday.

Third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt drew with Wolfsburg 1-1 in the early game.

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

Referee Robin Braun shows the red card to Leverkusen's Alex Grimaldo during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Patrik Schick is celebrated by his team after scoring his side's third goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz and Hoffenheim's Kevin Akpoguma challenge for the ball during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Jeremie Frimpong is celebrated by Leverkusen's Granit Xhaka after he scored his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Jeremie Frimpong celebrates after he scored his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Jeremie Frimpong, left, celebrates with teammates Victor Boniface and Florian Wirtz after he scored his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Jeremie Frimpong celebrates after he scored his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Victor Boniface scores the opening goal against Hoffenheim's goalkeeper Luca Philipp during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Jeremie Frimpong scores his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Leverkusen's Jeremie Frimpong, left, celebrates with Leverkusen's Victor Boniface after he scored his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and TSG Hoffenheim at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

BURGAS, Bulgaria (AP) — Paul Magnier claimed the opening stage of the Giro d’Italia after the French rider won a sprint finish, while race favorite Jonas Vingegaard finished safely in the pack on Friday.

Magnier, who rides for Soudal Quick-Step, will wear the pink shirt for Stage 2 after his first win at a three-week Grand Tour.

The Giro’s opening three stages are being held in Bulgaria. The opening stage was a flat 147-kilometer (91-mile) course from Nessebar to Burgas on the Black Sea coast. Magnier finished the stage in 3 hours, 21 minutes, edging Tobias Lund Andresen at the finish line.

Several riders went down in a crash when a rider clipped a temporary barrier during the run-in over the final kilometer. It appears all the riders who fell managed to get up and finish the stage.

Vingegaard is aiming to complete the rare feat of winning all three Grand Tours. The Danish leader of Jumbo Visma team won the Tour de France in 2022 and 2023 and the Spanish Vuelta last year. This year, he won the Paris-Nice and Volta de Catalonia weeklong races in March.

Tadej Pogačar, cycling's top talent, is skipping the Giro to focus on adding to his four Tour titles in July.

Saturday's stage is a hilly 221-kilometer ride from Burgas to Tarnovo.

The Giro finishes in Rome on May 31.

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

The pack rides during Stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)

The pack rides during Stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)

The pack rides during Stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)

France's Paul Magnier celebrates winning stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse via AP)

Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard rides during Stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)