Uberprufung der Bundesliga: Stuttgart leave it late, Bayern back on track, Leipzig end Dortmund run

International breaks are fun for nobody. Even though the Germans are probably the best football team in the world right now, the return of the Bundesliga will have been a welcome sight for fans of football around the world. The interval in the season also brought upheaval. For instance Bayern Munich finally appointed a successor to Carlo Ancelotti. Former boss Jupp Heynckes returned to the club to take the reigns until the end of the season at least. His first task was to dispose of Freiburg at the Allianz on Saturday. Borussia Dortmund also faced a tough task in the shape of Red Bull Leipzig at Signal Iduna Park, while Cologne were hoping to heave themselves off the foot of the table on Friday night in Stuttgart.

VfB Stuttgart 2-1 Cologne

Both sides turned up at the MercedesBenz Arena on Friday night hoping to recover from defeats on match day 7. Stuttgart were beaten 2-1 at the hands of Eintracht Frankfurt while Cologne were swept aside by the same score by Red Bull Leipzig on their own patch. Things didn’t start well for the away side here either when Anostasios Donis put Stuttgart on 34 minutes. Cologne managed to hang in there and equalised in the 77th minute through Domonique Heintz. Just when the game looked to be heading towards a draw, Chadrac Akolo won the game for the home side in the 94th minute and deepen Cologne’s woes.

Bayern Munich 5-0 Freiburg

Bayern were disappointed in Berlin last time out, having to share the spoils with Hertha following a 2-2 draw. However with Jupp Heynckes in now in the dugout they were looking to get back on track against Freiburg, looking to extend their good mood after dramatically beating Hoffenheim 3-2 last two weeks ago. Things didn’t start well for the away side though when Julian Schuster put through his own net to give Bayern an early lead on 8 minutes. Kingsley Coman then doubled Bayerns lead on 42 minutes to give Heynckes a good start to his return to the Allianz. Bayern went 3-0 up in the second half through Thiago Alcantara and Robert Lewandowski added a fourth. In stoppage time Joshua Kimmich added a fifth to put a smile back on the faces of all in red.

Hannover 96 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt

Hannover welcomed Frankfurt this week looking to dispel the ghost of their 2-1 defeat in Gladbach before the international break. Eintracht were hoping to prolong their good form having beaten Stuttgart in their last outing and they took the lead through Sebastien Haller within 10 minutes. Salif Sane equalised for the home side on 36 minutes and it looked as if the game would finish on even terms. That was until Ante Rebic scored a winner for Frankfurt in the 89th minute.

Hertha Berlin 0-2 Schalke

Hertha drew 2-2 with Bayern in their last game to go into the international break in high spirits having been  2-0 down. Schalke also drew in their last outing although they really should have beaten Bayer Leverkusen. Hertha’s task to maintain their good morale was dealt a blow on 44 minutes though when Genki Haraguchi was sent off. Things went from bad to worse 10 minutes after the restart when Leon Goretzka put Schalke ahead. Guido Burgstaller finished off the home side on 77 minutes to ensure Schalke claimed all the points.

Hoffenheim 2-2 Augsburg

Both these sides have had decent starts to the season, although Hoffenheim gave away a 2-0 lead against Freiburg in their last game to end up defeated 3-2. Augsburg were also on the end of defeat having lost 2-1 to Borussia Dortmund at home. This game took a while to get going but Benjamin Hubner put the home side ahead on 52 minutes. Michael Gregortisch equalised with 15 minutes left but Mark Uth scored on 85 minutes to seemingly give Hoffenheim the points. However Keving Vogt put through his own net in the last minute of normal time and the points were shared.

Mainz 3-2 Hamburg

Both these sides have had mixed fortunes at the beginning of the season. Mainz shared the points with Wolfsburg following a 1-1 draw in the last game, while Hamburg also drew with Werder Bremen in a goalless game. The goals would certainly flow here though and the net was bugled within 2 minutes as Alexandru Maxim gave Mainz an early lead. Their lead wouldn’t last long however as Walace equalised for Hamburg 7 minutes later. The game stayed level until the second half when it was effectively won in 6 minutes. First Stefen Bell put Mainz ahead in the 52nd minute, then Danny Latza scored a third to seemingly end the game on 58. Sahid Salihovic would give Hamburg a glimmer of hope by slotting a 92nd minute penalty but they left themselves with little time to strike again and, thus, went home pointless.

Borussia Dortmund 2-3 Red Bull Leipzig

Dortmund have been in scintillating form so far this season and were looking to extend that against Red Bull Leipzig, who dispatched of lowly Cologne 2-1 last time out. This was another game that was goal laden early on when Pierre Emerick Aubameyang put the home side ahead within 4 minutes. Marcel Sabitzer, a surprise starter for Leipzig, levelled the scores on 10 minutes however. Yussuf Poulsen then scored again for Leipzig to put Dortmund behind for the first time in the league this season. Jean-Kevin Augustin then drew a foul from Sokratis in the penalty area on 47 minutes for which the Greek was sent off. Augustin stepped up to convert the penalty himself and put BVB in real trouble. The numbers were levelled within 10 minutes when Stephan Ilsanker committed two crazy fouls within as many minutes to earn himself two yellow cards. Pierre Emerick Aubameyang scored a penalty of his own on 64 minutes but Dortmund couldn’t complete their comeback and were consigned to their first domestic defeat of the season.

Bayer Leverkusen 2-2 Wolfsburg

Sunday’s action started at the BayArena where Leverkusen, who drew 1-1 with Schalke before the international interval, entertained Wolfsburg, who drew with Mainz by the same score. It took half an hour for the deadlock to be broken here, when Lars Bender put Leverkusen 1-0 up. Divock Origi restored parity on the stroke of half-time but Lucas Alario gave the home side the lead once again on 61 minutes. Kuba Blasczykowski made it 2-2 on 69 minutes and that’s how it stayed.

Werder Bremen 0-2 Borussia Moenchengladbach

Werder Bremen were looking to improve their last Bundesliga result, a goalless draw with Hamburg, by beating Gladbach in Sundays late kick-off. Gladbach had beaten Hannover 2-1 before the internationals and were looking to do the same to Bremen here. They got off to a good start on 27 minutes when Lars Stindl gave them the lead. On 34 minutes Jannik Vestergaard made it 2-0 and ultimately ended the scoring to give Gladbach all three points.

Round 9 Fixtures

Friday 20th October

Schalke vs. Mainz (19.30)

Saturday 21st October

Eintracht Frankfurt vs. Borussia Dortmund (14.30)

Augsburg vs. Hannover 96 (14.30)

Borussia Moenchengladbach vs. Bayer Leverkusen (14.30)

Red Bull Leipzig vs. VfB Stuttgart (14.30)

Hamburg vs. Bayern Munich (17.30)

Sunday 22nd October

Cologne vs. Werder Bremen (12.30)

SC Freiburg vs. Hertha Berlin (14.30)

Wolfsburg vs. Hoffenheim (17.00)