Bayer Leverkusen's hopes of retaining their Bundesliga crown were dealt a huge blow following a 1-1 draw with St. Pauli on Sunday. 

Xabi Alonso's side are now eight points behind leaders Bayern Munich, who beat Heidenheim 4-0 on Saturday, with just four games of their season remaining. 

Leverkusen edged into a 32nd-minute lead when Alex Grimaldo's teasing free-kick into the box was headed beyond Nikola Vasilj by Patrik Schick. 

But they were unable to capitalise on their lead before half-time, with St. Pauli improving significantly after the break. 

They thought they had drawn level when Morgan Guilavogui tucked the ball home, only for the goal to be ruled out by VAR for a handball against the midfielder.

But St. Pauli did get a deserved equaliser soon after, with Lukas Hradecky failing to gather from a weak free-kick, which allowed Carlo Boukhalfa to tap into the net. 

Neither side were able to find a winner in the closing stages, though the result put Leverkusen's title defence on the brink ahead of facing Augsburg next weekend. 

Data Debrief: Same old story for Leverkusen

Many believed it would have been difficult for Leverkusen to replicate their Bundesliga success from last year, and it looks as though they have fallen just short late on. 

But it was another game that Alonso's side have thrown away a lead in the league. Leverkusen have now lost 15 points from winning positions in the Bundesliga this season. Only Wolfsburg (17) and Stuttgart (23) have lost more.

And they can have no complaints about the point, ending the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.74 from their six shots, while St. Pauli accumulated a 1.15 xG from their 10 efforts.