Wirtz's double downs Gladbach, keeps Leverkusen on pace with Bayern

Bayer Leverkusen starlet Florian Wirtz scored a brace as the German Bundesliga champions beat Borussia Monchengladbach 3-1 on Saturday, to keep four points behind leaders Bayern Munich.

Bayern went seven clear with a 3-2 win over Wolfsburg earlier on in the day, handing down the gauntlet but Leverkusen were dominant and controlled in notching their 11th straight win in all competitions.

"We're right in the middle of a title fight again - you can dream a little bit," Wirtz told Sky Germany.

With 32 minutes gone, Leverkusen enforcer Granit Xhaka won the ball in midfield and fed Wirtz, who beat a defender and slotted calmly home.

When Leverkusen won a penalty for handball midway through the second half, the 21-year-old Wirtz stepped up and converted.

Patrik Schick latched onto a Wirtz pass to score Leverkusen's third, keeping his remarkable recent goalscoring run alive. The Czech striker now has 12 goals in his past eight league games.

"I love playing against Gladbach," said Wirtz who also scored a brace against Gladbach in August.

He now has nine goals and eight assists in 18 league games this season.

Gladbach's Tim Kliendienst scored a consolation goal in stoppage time.

Having broken Bayern's 11-year title streak last campaign, Leverkusen eliminated the Bavarians from the German Cup this season. The two sides meet in Leverkusen in mid-February.

The only negative for Xabi Alonso's Leverkusen, who travel to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League midweek, was the loss of Martin Terrier, who was taken from the field early on with what looked like a serious ankle injury.