Bayer Leverkusen drew 3:3 in Heidenheim. Coach Schmidt is satisfied despite the draw. "We didn't collapse, but were able to turn the game around in our own way," said Schmidt in the SWR interview. "We gave everything and were rewarded." The 1. FC Heidenheim made no significant progress in the relegation battle with the 3:3 against Bayer Leverkusen, but there was great satisfaction after the final whistle, as the game had seemed lost at times. For Leverkusen, Malik Tillman and Patrik Schick scored twice. For Heidenheim, Hennes Behrens and Marvin Pieringer scored. The 52-year-old was also happy to give the fans "something back". After all, the team has been supported every time in the difficult weeks and has never been booed. Heidenheim's relegation to the second division is likely to be difficult to prevent with a 14th consecutive loss and a nine-point deficit on relegation rank 16, despite the respect earned by the 3:3 draw. The goals from Hennes Behrens (56.) and Marvin Pieringer (72./penalty/85.) show that the team's morale is good. At halftime, everything still looked like a clear win for Leverkusen. The guests had also seemed to lack match luck, as Julian Niehues hit the post immediately after the restart. But Behrens gave the outsider hope a little later. For the 21-year-old loanee from TSG Hoffenheim, it was his first goal in the Bundesliga. On Sunday evening, the left-back will be a guest on SWR Sport to talk about the sporting situation at FCH. Schmidt praised Behrens for his selfless performance, even though the defender ran out of energy in the end: "He came on in the 70th minute and spoke with the physios. It was about whether we should substitute him. But I didn't give him the option. He bit through because he's simply character-strong and has a great mentality."