Roger Schmidt apologises for referee row

Bayer Leverkusen boss Roger Schmidt has admitted that he was wrong to defy the referee's orders when being sent to the stands during Sunday's Bundesliga clash against Borussia Dortmund.

The 48-year-old was unhappy with a decision that went against his side in the build-up to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's match-winning strike in the 1-0 defeat at the BayArena.

Official Felix Zwayer took the decision to lead both teams off the field after Schmidt refused to leave his technical area following the 64th-minute incident.

Play eventually resumed after a short break, with Dortmund successfully seeing out the remainder of the game to close the gap on leaders Bayern Munich once more, but Schmidt had mixed feelings post-match over his personal protest.

"I'm not one for gestures," he is quoted as saying by FourFourTwo. "I wanted to know why he wanted to send me off and I tried to discuss that with him, but it didn't happen. I wanted to have a reason.

"Maybe that was a bit stubborn of me, so I have hurt my team. I'm sorry. I am a role model and I've not done myself justice, but sometimes it is easy to react in hectic and emotional situations. My team fell behind to an irregular goal.

"I have the fourth official noting that the kick was executed a thousand percent irregularly. [The referee] also did not give a thousand percent penalty and I'm just challenging for justice for my team."

Leverkusen, who remain fourth in the German top flight following the defeat, return to league action next weekend with a trip to take on Mainz 05.