Borussia Dortmund defender Waldemar Anton admitted that his side were not up to scratch in a shambolic opening stanza which saw them concede twice.
Christoph Baumgartner was on target both times, firing the Red Bulls in front after 20 minutes into the kick-off before doubling their advantage another 19 minutes later.
Coming into the fixture on the back of six consecutive top-flight wins, the BVB found themselves trailing by two goals at the Red Bull Arena.
It's the first time this season in the Bundesliga that Dortmund were in this position, as bogey team was proving too hot to handle once again.
After the match, Anton admitted that his team were not at their usual selves in the first 45 and lamented the manner in which the goals were conceded. He said:
""We weren't good enough in the first half. The goals we conceded were a bit too easy. Generally speaking, we didn't have the control we wanted in the first half. I don't know if it was down to intensity or because Leipzig played very well.""said Anton
Dortmund needed a big response in the second half and pulled one back just five minutes into the restart as Julian Ryerson's corner was headed in by Romulo Carodo.
Still trailing 2-1, Niko Kovac's side huffed and puffed in search of the elusive equazlier as their persistence finally paid off in the added minutes.
Fabio Silva, who had replaced an underperforming Serhou Guirassy, connected with fellow substitute Karim Adeyemi and coolly slotted home an effort from close-range for 2-2.
Nevertheless, Anton added that the match was rather even post the break and his side had the chances to score another one and win the game altogether.
""It was an open game in the second half. It could have gone either way. We then came back and did quite well in the end. We scored the 2-2 and still had the chance to make it 3-2. We want to focus on ourselves and continue to pick up points.""said Anton
Dortmund's winning streak ended but their unbeaten run remained intact, extending it to 16 games now. However, the gap between them and Bayern Munich extended to eight points following the result.
Interestingly, the Der Klassiker rivals come face-to-face next weekend in what's potentially a title-deciding game. A loss for Dortmund would all but end their hopes as it's crucial for them to prevail at home