Bundesliga Roundup – Matchday 12
Stuttgart 2-1 Dortmund
(Akolo 4′, Brekalo 51′ – Philipp 45′)
The Borussia Dortmund horror show continued on the first kickoff of matchday 12. An early mix-up between Marc Bartra and Roman Bürki opened the way for Chadrac Akolo to put Stuttgart in front. Maximilian Philipp equalized for Dortmund with a well struck rebound – off of a saved Andre Schürrle penalty – to leave the two sides level at the break. Alas, Stuttgart were not to be denied their result, and Josip Brekalo bagged the eventual winner, exploiting some poor positioning by the black and yellow. Stuttgart should have ended the contest, but their lack of composure in front of goal did not cost them the result, as BVB proved not to have the finishing touch.
Bayern Munich 3-0 Augsburg
(Vidal 31′, Lewandowski 38′, 49′)
Bayern continued their winning ways since the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti and the appointment of treble-winning Jupp Heynckes with a routine 3-0 win over Augsburg. Arturo Vidal opened the scoring from close range for the hosts. Robert Lewandowski grabbed a brace and ended the contest for his team, who are opening up the lead at the top they are accustomed to having in seasons past.
Hoffenheim 1-1 Frankfurt
(Uth 90+2′ – Boateng 13′)
Mark Uth poked home an equalizer and rescued a point for hosts and denied Frankfurt the three that would have pushed them as high as third in the table. Hoffenheim gave Kevin-Prince Boateng possession cheaply and he fired home from outside the box to put Frankfurt a goal up within the first fifteen minutes. The visitors seemed to have done enough to grind out the 1-0 but Serge Gnabry proved the difference-maker from the bench for Hoffenheim. Gnabry burst down the touchline, cut inside, and crossed for the incoming Mark Uth, who converted from close.
Bayer Leverkusen 2-2 RB Leipzig
(Bailey 44′, Volland 74′ – Werner pen. 12′, Forsberg pen. 54′)
Bayer Leverkusen gave a glimpse of what could have been last season and what they can become this season. Kevin Volland earned his ten men a deserved point against RB Leipzig with a well struck volley in the seventy-fourth minute. Timo Werner kicked off the scoring in the 13th minute from the spot before Leon Bailey made it one all at the halfway mark. Leverkusen were set back once more when Benjamin Henrichs was sent off and Leipzig awarded a penalty, this with Emil Forsberg dispatching from spot this time. However, Leverkusen showed their determination to attack and eventually scored an equalizer, through a Kevin Volland volley on 74 minutes.
Mainz 1-0 Cologne
(Brosinski pen 43′)
Köln will feel cheated in this match to come away with a loss, and rightfully so. Mainz were gifted a wrongful VAR penalty – as the match official admitted after the game – and Daniel Brosinski obliged for the solitary goal of the game. Frederick Sorensen was deemed to have fouled Pablo De Blasis inside the box, however the contact was minimal and De Blasis made the most of it. Mainz held on for the one goal win while losing to Giulio Donati to a red card 19 minutes from full time.
Wolfsburg 3-1 Freiburg
(Gerhardt 3′, Malli 29′, 70′ – Kapustka 68′)
After a record-breaking streak of seven draws from his first seven matches as manager, Martin Schmidt’s Wolfsburg claimed three points to climb their way out of the drop zone. Yannick Gerhardt opened the scoring for the hosts, barely three minutes in, but the star performer this game was Yunus Malli. Malli scored a brace with the goals coming each side of a Bartosz Kapustka consolation.
Hertha Berlin 2-4 Mönchengladbach
(Ibisevic 38′, Weiser 71′ – Stindl 5′, Hazard pen. 14′, Raffael 20′, 77′)
Mönchengladbach roared past Hertha in the first 20 or so minutes of this clash, scoring 3 in the process. A classy finish from Lars Stindl put the visitors up in the fifth minute and a Throgan Hazard goal – another controversially given VAR penalty – separated two goals from Raffael. Hertha finished the first half stronger, getting one goal back through Vedad Ibisevic. An improbable comeback seemed destined when the Berlin side pulled within one via Mitchell Weiser but Raffael put the game to bed and sent Gladbach to third place with his second of the game 20 minutes before time.
Schalke 04 2-0 Hamburger SV
(Di Santo pen. 17′, Burgstaller 77′)
Schalke picked up right where they left off before the international break, making it six wins from the past six for the Royal Blues. Hamburg outplayed their position in the table early on, with Filip Kostic a dangerous threat down the left flank. Despite this quick start from Hamburg, they failed to create any chances of note and were punished for this when the Schalke eleven finally clicked. In the 17th minute, Yevhen Konoplyanka was brought down in the box, allowing Franco Di Santo to score his first goal in 1054 Bundesliga minutes. Schalke went into the break one to the good, but Hamburg started the second half as strongly as they had the first. Dennis Deikmeier came close to equalizing, but was denied his first ever Bundesliga goal by a clearance off the line. As Hamburger continued to push forward for an equalizer, spaces opened up and Schalke took full advantage of this in the closing stages. Daniel Caligiuri drove forward and found Guido Burgstaller, who tucked it away to send Domenico Tedesco and his side second in the league.
Werder Bremen 4-0 Hannover 86
(Bartels 38′, Kruse 55′, 59′, 78′)
Werder Bremen grabbed their first win of the season and managed to do so in emphatic fashion. Led by a rejuvenated Max Kruse and Fin Bartels, the hosts had multiple chances to go in front at the Weser-Stadion before finally doing so through a sublime chip from Fin Bartels, set up by Max Kruse. Florian Kohfledt and his men eased through the rest of the game to give the man in the dugout his first win as Bremen manager. Max Kruse bagged a second-half hat-trick, his first goals since the final matchday of the previous season. Hannover had opportunities to work their way back into the contest throughout the duration of the match, but never managed to create any as clear as Bremen had.