Braced for the Bundesliga?

Hannover 96 1-1 Borussia Dortmund (43,754)

Following matchday 5’s trouncing at the hands of Bayern Munich, Dortmund manager Jürgen Klopp gave a restrained team talk on the pitch before engaging his squad in light, “meditative-like” rest and recuperation sessions on Monday. This patient approach seemed to have paid off in week 6 as the BVB pummeled their hosts Hannover throughout an entirely one-sided 1st half, only to be thwarted by the in-form Florian Fromlowitz, deputizing for the 96ers’ injured German number 1, Robert Enke. It somehow took Dortmund until a minute before the break to make their dominance count, Nuri Sahin’s 1st of the season finally breaking the deadlock at the AWD-Arena. However, their lead was short lived. Ivory Coast international striker Didier Ya Konan, signed from Rosenborg during the summer, capitalized on space afforded him after a quickly taken throw-in and scored with a powerful, rising effort that caught Roman Weidenfeller out at his near post for his 1st in German football and leveled the scores 3 minutes after the turnaround. It was a game ridden with errors and Klopp’s already thin patience may have turned anorexic had Ya Konan seized on another mistake to win the game in the latter stages. Klopp will hope his side soon snaps out of its relaxed state as the BVB currently sit a place below their opponents and in a potentially perilous position in 13th place.

VfL Bochum 2-3 1 FSV Mainz 05 (16,225)

Klopp’s former club, Mainz, now managed by a man of similar appearance if not style to the Dortmund coach, Thomas Tuchel, have enjoyed a wonderful start to life in the top tier this season. Having already accounted for the mighty Bayern Munich in week 3, they climbed to 5th in the table on Saturday after a hard-fought win against Bochum at the rewirpower Stadion. Mimoun Azaouagh put Bochum ahead with his 3rd of a fruitful campaign on 7 minutes before a flurry of goals in and around the interval saw Andreas Ivanschitz equalize right on the 45 minute mark with a stooping header and Diego Klimowicz put the home side back in front in injury time with a controlled volley. Andre Schürrle then drew Mainz level again with a clipped finish 7 minutes after the restart and the 18-year-old struck a second 20 minutes later when he was presented with an open goal after some penalty-box pinball to seal the win. The VfL were already feeling the heat from 17th spot even before fans set home-made posters alight in the stands in protest against the management and the club were forced to sack coach Marcel Koller on Monday.

Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-4 TSG 1899 Hoffenheim (46,511)

Hoffenheim had to come from behind to claim 3 points on Saturday after a fast start from Mönchengladbach, Juan Arango giving Gladbach the early advantage when the Venezuelan captain blasted home his 2nd of the season from 25 yards. While Hoffenheim’s Timo Hildebrand was faultless for the opener, the German stopper had to hold his hands up for spoon-feeding Raul Marcelo Bobadilla’s tame effort to the onrushing Roberto Colautti to make it 2 after just 17 minutes at Borussia Park. With Hoffenheim’s solid defensive start to the season out of the window, they went about doing what they do best and attacking. It took just 4 minutes to reduce the arrears but only thanks to a huge chunk of luck, Sejad Salihovic’s free-kick somehow squeezing past a clearly confused Logan Bailly in the Gladbach goal. TSG survived some swift play on the counter and a hearty handball shout in front of a pumped up crowd, then struck 3 times in the final 5 minutes, substitute De Matos Maicosuel composure personified as the Brazilian’s ice-cold finish found the far corner and his effort was followed by a Chinedu Obasi header and a deft Demab Ba dink to put Hoffenheim 4th and slip the Foals back into the bottom half.

FC Schalke 04 1-2 VfL Wolfsburg (61,000)

Former Wolf Felix Magath was beaten by his old charges in the Veltins Arena on Friday night as two Edin Dzeko finishes either side of a Benedikt Höwedes strike gave Wolfsburg the win that lifts them into the top half while Schalke drop to just 2 places above their guests, in 7th place. The game was goalless at half-time before two headers from set-pieces looked to have given the sides a share of the spoils. But just 80 seconds after Höwedes had cancelled out his first effort, Bosnian striker Dzeko notched his second of the game by drilling the ball low past Manuel Neuer from a Makoto Hasebe centre with 9 minutes to play and despite Kevin Kuranyi hitting the inside of the post towards the end the visitors held on to give new coach Armin Veh and his champions a timely boost after a sloppy start this time around. Schalke appear to be headed in the opposite direction after a bright opening to the season and Magath will hope for a big return from the derby in Dortmund next weekend to reinvigorate his new club.

VfB Stuttgart 0-2 1 FC Köln (41,000)

It is fair to say that Markus Babbel’s honeymoon period as Stuttgart trainer is well and truly over. After a phenomenal run at the back end of last season, VfB have started this campaign extremely sluggishly and, following a 0-2 home defeat at the hands of Köln on Saturday, they are now only 1 place and 1 point above the relegation zone. Köln have also endured a miserable start to the season under new coach Zvonimir Soldo, who played alongside Babbel for Stuttgart in the 90’s, but they leapt off the foot of the table to 16th with this win after newly signed striker Sebastien Freis, brought in from Karlsruhe in the summer but overshadowed thus far by the return of Lukas Podolski, netted his 1st for the club with a powerfully planted header 25 minutes in.

Then it was the Jens Lehmann show. Now, far be it from me to revel in another’s misfortune but, as the senile stopper advanced more than 40 yards from his goal and attempted to chest the ball down before being dispossessed and presenting Wilfried Sanou with an empty net, one couldn’t help but wonder how many games he has left at this level. It was eccentric in the extreme and it may no longer be deemed a necessary evil by Babbel as ever more marbles are misplaced in Lehmannland.

FC Bayern München 2-1 1 FC Nürnberg (69,000)

The Bayern Derby began with an emotional address from München manager Uli Hoeneß in remembrance of Dominik Brunner, who was beaten and kicked to death trying to protect a group of children from being attacked last week in a Munich train station. While this event helped put the two sides’ rivalry into perspective, it didn’t diminish FCN coach Michael Oenning’s sense of achievement after his attack-minded substitution allowed Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting to cancel out Ivica Olic’s 2nd of the season at the start of the 2nd half with his first contribution in the 73rd minute on Saturday. The neuzugang from HSV’s1st 2 touches controlled, the 3rd converted what would have been the game’s crucial goal had Daniel van Buyten not risen to head home an Arjen Robben cross and break Nürnberg hearts 10 minutes later. That win at the Allianz Arena was enough to take Bayern into the top 3, while FCN stay 14th, 2 points off the bottom.

Eintracht Frankfurt 1-1 Hamburger SV (51,500)

Frankfurt have enjoyed an encouraging opening to the new campaign and continued their impressive form at the Commerzbank Arena on Sunday by holding league leaders Hamburg to a score draw despite falling behind to a Ze Roberto header as early as the 8th minute, as HSV scored 1st for the 6th time out of 6 this season. It was Marco Russ who provided the killer touch on 32 minutes after some beautifully worked 1-touch football created space for the man from Hanau to thread a low volley through Frank Rost’s legs and claim a vital point to keep his side 6th in the standings. Bruno Labbadia’s HSV stay top as a result of Bayer Leverkusen’s draw in Bremen.

Hertha BSC Berlin 0-4 SC Freiburg (38,176)

Hertha officials insist that coach Lucien Favre has not been given an ultimatum regarding the team’s results in 2009/10 but the Swiss tactician will surely not be afforded a repeat of Sunday’s performance at the Olympiastadion which saw the hosts carved apart by newly promoted Freiburg in a 4-goal drubbing that left the “Old Lady” of Berlin mugged, helpless and hoping to be put out of her misery. Favre may yet suffer a similar fate if he cannot arrest a slump that has seen his side lose 5 games in succession and slip to the bottom rung on the Bundesliga ladder, and it may be “Siegen oder fliegen” in their fixture away to Hoffenheim next Sunday.

Sunday’s debacle began with 19-year-old Sascha Burchert in goal in place of the injured Jaroslav Drobny and the keeper soon seemed out of his depth as goals flew past him with alarming regularity. The teenage stopper’s cause was not helped by slapstick defending that allowed Ivica Banovic the freedom of the capital to open the scoring after just 6 minutes and it was downhill from there. Freiburg’s measured build-up play should not be dismissed but it was far too easy to pick their passes at the heart of the home defence and find Cedrick Makiadi utterly undetected in the 12th minute to double their lead. It could and should have been more even before a hopeful long ball was latched onto by Mohamadou Idrissou, who made the game safe before the turnaround with an arrowed effort into the top corner. Hertha started the second period brighter but wasted decent situations by choosing to ignore options and shoot from distance before the away side, who had taken their foot off the pedal considerably and had slowed to a rush-hour crawl, rubbed industrial salt into the gaping wound as Banovic again strolled through the Berlin backbone to slot home past a bewildered Burchert on 68 minutes and take SCF up into a creditable 11th.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen 0-0 Werder Bremen (30,210)

Jupp Heynckes’ men missed the chance to go top of the table at the weekend as Werder took a valuable point from the Bay Arena on Sunday. It could have been even better for Bremen but the good work of Marko Marin was not followed up by an end product that has been missing since the injury to Mesut Özil earlier in the season. Had the German international been a little more imposing than his 1,70m frame he may have applied a finishing touch to Aaron Hunt’s first half pass but he narrowly failed to make contact. Bayer had their chances in a more animated 2nd half as Stefan Kießling had a goal correctly disallowed for offside and Arturo Vidal should have done better when put through by Toni Kroos late on but found Tim Wiese in imperious form as he tried to chip the big German international. The stalemate leaves Bayer 2nd on goal difference as Werder lose ground on the top 2 and slip to 8th.

Brand New Bundesliga

VfL Wolfsburg 2-3 Bayer 04 Leverkusen

In 25 meetings between these two clubs there has never been a 0-0, although referee Dr. Felix Brych may have wished for one after two red cards and a penalty apiece gave both sides cause for complaint at the VW-Arena on Saturday.

The game’s turning point came in the 32nd minute, when home keeper Diego Benaglio was sent off for an ill-advised lunge outside his box that thwarted the efforts of visiting striker Erin Derdiyok. (It didn’t exactly pole-axe him, though, as the attacker seemed to imply with his sprawling actions in the event’s immediate aftermath.) That allowed the guests to establish a 3-goal lead before Derdiyok himself was on the wrong end of the referee’s red mist for a second bookable offence that helped Wolfsburg back into the contest and ensure a barnstorming finish to a riveting encounter.

Leverkusen’s 1st came when substitute stopper Andre Lenz twice parried point-blank attempts before Simon Rolfes rammed home to put his side in the ascendancy shortly before the interval. An incredibly soft penalty award endeared the good doctor to the home crowd even further in the 51st minute to allow Rolfes to plunder his 2nd from the spot, before Derdiyok was dismissed two minutes later. As Armin Veh was forced to go for broke by replacing defender Marcel Schäfer with Bosnian forward Edin Dzeko, his side were caught cold by an intricate attack from the away team that presented Stefan Kießling with an empty net in which to notch his 5th of the season with half an hour still on the clock.

With numerical parity restored, the balance of play became far more even, and the Wolves were dragged back into the contest by midfield maestro Zvjezdan Misimovic, who scored with a sumptuous set-piece after 76 minutes for his 3rd of another so far impressive campaign. Ten against ten, Dr. Brych decided to level the penalty count by giving an equally questionable spot-kick to Wolfsburg with 10 minutes to play, and Grafite who, having scored 28 Bundesliga goals last year, was enduring a 358 minute drought, knocked in his 11th penalty out of 11 in German football to make things interesting.

Bayer have managed a meagre total of seven points in their 12 visits to Wolfsburg, losing nine times, but they held on and are now the only team, other than Hamburg, to win on their last four league outings. Jupp Heynckes’ title contenders sit 2nd on goal difference, while Champions Wolfsburg now lie in 10th position.


Borussia Dortmund 1-5 FC Bayern München

80,552 fans squeezed into the Westfalenstadion to watch the two teams to have won the Bundesliga twice or more in the last 16 years on Saturday. Such is the competitive history of this rivalry that FCB have drawn against the BVB 26 times - more often than against any other team. More recently Munich have found it more easy-going, with five wins and four draws from their last 10 meetings with Dortmund, though, and there was only a brief flicker of danger that this one would end up all-square.

When a Nuri Sahin free kick was met by a Mats Hummels header on 10 minutes to put Dortmund in front there was hope. But Borussia have now scored exactly one goal in each of their last five league matches and once Mario Gomez had levelled from an offside position 10 minutes before the break the three points began to slowly slide south to Bavaria. Arjen Robben, having already struck a sublime volley on this ground this season to help Real Madrid win a friendly arranged to celebrate BVB’s centenary last month, began to run proceedings. When he was joined, from the bench, by Franck Ribery it signalled the beginning of the end for Jürgen Klopp’s Jungs.

First, Bastien Schweinsteiger beat Roman Weidenfeller at his near post, then Ribery curled a wonderful free-kick past him to formally open the floodgates. Youth product Thomas Muller entered the fray at the same time as the Frenchman and grabbed a brace to complete the rout, his second a stunning strike into the top corner from 25 yards. Bayern now loom large on the perimeter of the title race, slithering into 5th spot, while Dortmund face tough times as they have slipped to 15th with 5 points from as many matches.

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim 3-0 VfL Bochum

A Stanislav Sestak hat-trick gave Bochum a 3-0 win in this fixture last time around, but it was roles reversed on Saturday as Ralf Rangwick’s team returned to the top seven. Hoffenheim's last three home matches had ended in a draw with 1899 having notched just 2 goals in total, but Bochum have now also failed to find the net in nearly 400 minutes of football since scoring three times in the space of 12 minutes on the opening day, and they never looked like amending that record once they had gone behind to a deadly Demba Ba finish on 16 minutes. A fabulous solo-effort from wing-wizard Chinedu Obasi and Marvin Commper’s late tap-in gave the home side the points at the Rhein-Neckar Stadion to leave VfL struggling in 15th spot.

SC Freiburg 0-2 Eintracht Frankfurt

SCF’s South Korean striker Du-ri Cha faced his father Bum-Kun Cha’s former club Frankfurt, where the ex-stopper is still held in high esteem, and nearly made his mark with a long-range effort narrowly kept out by Eintracht’s Oka Nikolov on Saturday. However, despite the SC having won five of their last six home matches against the Hessians, Eintracht have an excellent record away from home this season and remain unbeaten after Alexander Meier walked the ball into the net in the last minute, following Maik Franz’s 1st for the club from close-range early in the 2nd half, to cap another accomplished performance from Michael Skibbe’s side and leave them 3rd with five games played. Freiburg have now conceded 12 times this term – more than any other side – and stay 16th after their 3rd loss so far.

1 FSV Mainz 05 2-1 Hertha BSC Berlin

The 05ers overtook the "Old Lady" of Berlin on Saturday as late goals from Andreas Ivanschitz and Aristide Bance cancelled out Maximilian Nicu’s opener for Hertha. The Berliners seemed relatively secure until suddenly succumbing to a late onslaught from their hosts and now sit stranded in 17th after Ivanschitz scored from the spot and Burkina Faso‘s Bance showed neat footwork in netting his 3rd of the campaign to undo all keeper Jaroslav Drobny’s preceding hard work in keeping him at bay up to that point. The 05ers are now unbeaten at home in their last seven league matches (five wins, two draws) and are up into 8th place on the back of this fine run, which included that epic win over Bayern Munich in week 3.

1 FC Nürnberg 1-0 Borussia Mönchengladbach

Nürnberg had failed to score in three hours and 26 minutes before this match but Peer Kluge’s prodded effort just six minutes in proved sufficient in seeing off Gladbach at the easycredit Stadion and subsequently climbing to 13th in the table. The FCN have more Bundesliga wins to their name against Gladbach (19) than against any other team and have won three of their last four meetings with the "Foals". But Michael Frontzeck’s men did have their chances, Roberto Colautti wasting a glorious opening by nodding a header over from three yards before a brilliant dummy by new number 10 Raul Marcelo Bobadilla created space inside the area, but the Argentinian assassin shot wide. They were also denied a stonewall penalty when Karim Matmour was upended in the second period, but can take heart from only conceding once, having let in 11 in their previous three away matches. They drop to 9th.

Hamburger SV 3-1 VfB Stuttgart

A delightful goal from Mladen Petric set Hamburg on their way to a vital win over Stuttgart at the HSH Nordbank Arena on Sunday, where Markus Babbel’s side suffered their 2nd loss of the season and are yet to win away thus far. The VfB have won five of their last seven meetings with Hamburger SV but they were put to the sword here by way of a well-rounded performance from the home side.

The opener from Petric was superb, the robust Croatian picking the ball up just inside the opponents’ half, outfoxing Thomas Hitzlsperger with quick feet and solid technique before exchanging passes with Dutchman Eljero Elia and unleashing an unstoppable left-footed rasper into Jens Lehmann’s top corner. You could have put 11 Lehmann’s in there – and their owners – and they still would’ve been fighting only to pick the ball out of the back of the net after half an hour. Elia then got in on the act with another smart finish just before the hour mark, Lehmann this time beaten by a low Aufsetzer (daisy-cutter) that flew into the bottom left-hand corner. Hamburg have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last 12 Bundesliga matches - the longest such run in the league, and only four minutes later Christian Träsch delivered into the path of Pavel Pogrebnyak and the Russian doubled his season’s tally with an angled finish.

But the last word went to the oldest (outfield) player on the pitch, as the evergreen Ze Roberto stepped up to make the game safe with a low drive that Lehmann gloved but could not keep out in the closing stages. Hamburg retain top spot after their fourth successive win by virtue of a marginally better goal difference than rivals Leverkusen, while Stuttgart fall to 12th, a point above the dropzone.

Werder Bremen 0-0 Hannover 96

Werder have won their last five home matches against 96 scoring 21 goals and conceding only two in the process, so it was with some surprise that the home fans greeted the final whistle that confirmed a stalemate at the Weserstadion on Sunday. The hosts went into the match on the back of two consecutive wins accompanied by separate three-goal hauls but, although Marko Marin tested replacement keeper Florian Fromlowitz from distance and Claudio Pizarro was denied twice by the stand-in stopper, Per Mertesacker’s set-piece header came closest to breaking the deadlock but was cleared off the line in the first half and as a result, Werder stand in 6th.

Jari Stajner had two opportunities to snatch an unlikely victory for Hannover but was denied by assured handling from Tim Wiese. Only once (in 21 attempts) in the history of the Bundesliga have the 96ers been able to win in the Weserstadion - Fredi Bobic scored a brace in their 2-1 win during the 2002/03 season. This hard-fought point took them to 11th.

1 FC Köln 1-2 FC Schalke 04

And so it finally came to pass that Prince Poldi found himself on the scoresheet for the very first time since his emotional homecoming. It mattered little the goals scored either side of it by the opposition. Or that the resulting reversal set the league’s longest winless streak at six. Or that the defeat left Köln rock bottom of the Bundesliga after five matches. These wer mere details. They broke the bank to get their man, and now he was paying them back. This was to be the first of many decisive interventions that would carry the Köln all the way to salvation. Schalke looked to the details for consolation.

In their last 15 matches against Köln, the Royal Blues have failed to score only once, and it took less than two minutes for an Ivan Rakitic corner to find Gerald Asamoah unmarked at the back post, who nodded the ball back across for Jefferson Farfan to beat a static defence to the loose ball and glance home a header in the 2nd minute. However, Schalke have failed to score in two successive matches for the first time since early 2008 and nerves re-surfaced when Maniche found Fabrice Ehret, who slid a ball into Lukas Podoloski, who did the rest. The German international and local pin-up ghosted past Marcelo Bordon, stretching to control with his right before burying the ball at the near post with his infamous left foot.

What may have appeared to be salvation to the home supporters resembled temporary relief to the rest, and so it turned out when Levan Kobiashvili utilized the acres of space that he was offered to deadly effect by guiding the ball into the far corner for the wnner a minute after the restart, ironically crushing any false hope of victory at the same end that it had been given to them by their Prince when the contest was just 6 minutes old. This well-earned win puts Felix Mageth’s boys into 3rd ahead of their clash with Champions Wolfsburg next Friday night.

Bundesliga Beginnings

With 111 new players and 10 new coaches, the Bundesliga takes on a fresh new look this season. And with attendances up and Sky’s arrival set to boost the league’s global profile the Germans are in predictably buoyant mood ahead of the new campaign.

Here is how the 18 clubs have progressed so far:

VfL Wolfsburg

Reigning Fußballer des Jahres and Torschützenkönig Grafite appeared to have picked up where he left off last year for the league Champions with an opening day goal in a 2-0 win over Stuttgart. A 3-1 win in Köln gave new boss Armin Veh further cause for optimism before consecutive defeats at home to Hamburg then at the Allianz Arena, conceding 7 goals in the process, now mean that former coach Felix Magath’s shadow looms large over the VW-Arena once more. The fact that star striker Grafite has failed to add to his week 1 tally is significant, as is the loss of club captain Josue with a knee injury that caused him to miss the 3-0 defeat in München. After successfully resisting offers from all over Europe for prodigal frontman Edin Dzeko during the summer, they will also expect him to add heavily to his current 1 goal haul over the course of the campaign, while new boy Obafemi Martins will add further firepower, having already bagged 2 from 3 appearances. The Wolves sit 7th and face a home clash with in-form Bayer Leverkusen next before travelling to Magath’s Schalke during a crucial 2 week period in September.

FC Schalke 04

2009’s Trainer des Jahres Felix Magath started out life at Schalke in impressive fashion, 2 straight wins - in Nürnberg and at home to Bochum - alleviating any early fears he may have held of being able to replicate success in his new surroundings. However, his team have not found the net in their last 2 games, picking up a solitary point in a goalless draw in Hoffenheim before unthinkably succumbing to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of promoted SC Freiburg at the Veltins Arena on Saturday. The club have been unusually quiet on the transfer front as Magath intends to try and get the best out of what he has for now, but they have picked up promising German youngster Lewis Holtby from Alemannia Aachen and former Brazilian international Mineiro for free after the defensive midfielder was discarded by Chelsea. Schalke are now 4th in the table with impending trips to Köln and Dortmund sandwiched by their titanic encounter with Magath’s former employers Wolfsburg in 2 weeks’ time.

Hertha BSC Berlin

This season is very slowly starting to take shape for Hertha BSC. The Berliners have had to come to terms with father figure Dieter Hoeneß seeking pastures new as well as the departures of influential frontmen Marko Pantelic and the on-loan Andriy Voronin. Results have not been good, a 1-0 win over Hannover on matchday 1 being their only success to date and 3 losses in a row – against Mönchengladbach, Bochum and, most recently, Werder Bremen – have cranked up the pressure on new Manager Michael Preetz. The club did announce the arrival of 3 new players on transfer deadline day, including that of ex-Dortmund midfield stalwart Florian Kringe, and this, allied with Sunday’s greatly improved performance during the defeat to Werder at the Olympiastadion should give the supporters hope for the season ahead. The team also made it through to the 2nd round of the DFB-Cup and the group stage of the UEFA Europa League, thanks to a miraculous comeback against Brondby inspired by on-fire Serbian maestro Gojko Kacar. The boys from the capital still lie in the danger zone in 16th place but can look forward to fixtures against 2 promoted sides, Mainz and Freiburg, in the upcoming weeks.

Eintracht Frankfurt

The return of club captain Ioannis Amanatidis after a lengthy lay-off has proved to be the catalyst for an upsurge in his side’s form and fortune this season. A high-octane start to the campaign saw Frankfurt take all 3 points from Bremen in a 5-goal thriller at the Weserstadion, and draws against Nürnberg, Köln and Dortmund leave the team who finished 13th last season unbeaten after 4 games with Amanatidis having netted on 4 occasions. They have looked revitalized under new trainer Michael Skibbe and on current form the fans will relish a trip to Freiburg before eagerly playing host to Hamburg in matchday 6.

HSV Hamburg

Dutchman Martin Jol was another trainer lured away from the Bundesliga in the summer – destination Ajax back in his Holland homeland. His successor Bruno Labbadia, formaerly of Leverkusen, has enjoyed a terrific opening spell in charge, an opening day draw in Freiburg the only blemish on an otherwise perfect scorecard. Wins over Köln (3-1), Dortmund (4-1) and away to Champions Wolfsburg (4-2) have been impressive aesthetically, as well as efficiently. Neuzugang Marcus Berg has yet to cement a place in the starting 11, the young Swede having had to play second fiddle to Peruvian hitman Paolo Guerrero, who has 4 goals in as many matches this term. However, his addition to an already exciting playing roster should in time prove an astute move from Labbadia, as should the acquisition of vastly experienced playmaker Ze Roberto from Bayern. HSV sit atop the pack, as do local rivals St. Pauli in der zweite Bundesliga, making Hamburg Germany’s top football city at the moment. Hamburg face Stuttgart next before visiting Frankfurt in two early tests of their title credentials.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen

Jupp Heynckes is the division’s oldest coach at 64, yet his energetic Leverkusen outfit lead the way alongside Hamburg as we enter September. 2nd only on goals scored, this well-balanced side has been offered depth and assurance with the signing of Sami Hyypia from Liverpool to shore up their rearguard – so often a stumbling block to success last season – and Heynckes’ attacking style has been rewarded with a big win over Freiburg along with narrow victories over Hoffenheim and Bochum, with a point gained from their week 1 match in Mainz. Swiss striker Eren Derdiyok has been bought from Basle but it is Stefan Kießling who has shone, with 4 in 4 games thus far representing an admirable return for a striker who aims to force his way into Joachim Löw’s World Cup plans next year. His team’s next 2 games could be pivotal as they meet Wolfsburg and then Werder within a vital 2-week stretch.

Werder Bremen

Wilkommen zu Hause Claudio Pizarro is the cry from the Weserstadion as the Peruvian pin-up has finally made his switch from west London permanent, celebrating in style with 2 goals in his 1st game back helping his new employers overturn what had threatened to become another disappointing start to a season. Storms heard brewing after the home loss to Frankfurt were tempered with their well-earned draw at the Allianz Arena followed by hard-fought wins over Mönchengladbach and Hertha Berlin to take Thomas Schaaf’s team 3rd. On top of Pizarro’s comeback, Tim Borowski has also returned to the club after a brief stint in Bavaria and attacking options have again been added in the form of Bolivian Marcello Moreno from Shaktar Donetsk and der Flügelflitzer Marko Marin from Gladbach. Hannover visit Bremen next, while a colossal clash with Leverkusen follows in week 6.

SC Freiburg

Aufsteiger Freiburg began with an encouraging home draw with Hamburg and, despite being comprehensibly beaten by both Stuttgart and Leverkusen in the 2 contests that followed, the month culminated in a famous win for the new boys of the Bundesliga at the Veltins Arena, a 1st half Du-Ri Cha strike enough to see off the top-flight’s early pace setters in week 4. Cha, a journeyman defender signed from TuS Koblenz in July, is 1 of 6 new signings in a squad which hopes to escape a prolongued season of turmoil by avoiding a repetition of scorelines such as the 5-0 reversal at home to Leverkusen in week 3. Frankfurt and Hertha provide the opposition on their next two outings as they sit just 1 spot outside the relegation places.

1 FC Köln

Prince Poldi’s procession was met with promises of proliferation but these seem to have been premature as Köln prop up the pile having scored only 2 goals in 4 games so far this term, with the returning boy wonder yet to get off the mark during his long-awaited 2nd stint at the club. Sebastien Freis has also been picked up from Karlsruhe but he, too, is yet to score and Maniche has been drafted in from Athletico Madrid to play alongside his countryman Petit in the middle of the park. New coach Zvonomir Soldo has stepped in to fill the void created by the departure of Christoph Daum to Turkey but has not yet found the winning formula with his side having picked up only a single point - that by way of a stalemate with Frankfurt 2 games ago. Setbacks against Dortmund, Wolfsburg and Hamburg either side of that unimpressive deadlock have not been unmerited, but with games featuring Schalke and Stuttgart to come in their next 2 fixtures their will be no let up in the challenge to improve on last season’s mid-table finish.

Borussia Dortmund

As one of the relatively few coaches to have survived the cull in the Bundesliga since May, Jürgen Klopp must cherish the stability he has nurtured in Dortmund. However, he must also be aware that this is to be a key season in the development of his young side, as several 1st-teamers have moved on and it will be down to the likes of Mohammed Zidan to step into the breach, as he did on Sunday with a vital goal away to Frankfurt that earned his side a share of the spoils. Dimitar Rangelov, recently signed from Energie Cottbus, should give the team greater creativity while Argentinian attacker Lucas Barrios offers an alternative up top. 1-1 draws with Frankfurt and Stuttgart as well as an opening day defeat of Köln will give the management heart but the 1-4 reversal in Hamburg on day 2 was surely the stuff of Klopp’s worst nightmares. Up next is the visit of Bayern Munich to Signal Iduna Park before a more apt appraisal of their season may be drawn from their trip to Hannover the following week.

VfL Bochum

Having eventually come through a tumultuous campaign last time out relatively unscathed, Jo-Jo side Bochum will hope for an easier escape route from the drop this year. But with only striker Zlatko Dedic to show for an entire transfer window’s worth of work, and with the team presently on 14th in the standings, it seems set to be another season of struggle at the rewirpower Stadion. In one of the craziest kits seen in many a long year, so shocking in its design that it resembles Oxfam retail at its worst that has been through 1 too many washes, their home form has actually been encouraging. A high-scoring draw with Mönchengladbach and a 1-0 triumph over Hertha Berlin testify to this. Defeats at Schalke and Leverkusen seemed inevitable, though, and they now face a long journey to Hoffenheim before returning to the relative security of a home fixture with Mainz.

Borussia Mönchengladbach

This summer’s managerial merry-go-round took Michael Frontzeck from Arminia Bielefeld to Mönchengladbach in the wake of Hans Meier’s decision to step down after leading the club to safety, having taken over at the start of the calendar year with the club rock bottom. The turbulent times look to be behind Gladbach now as they reflect on a pleasing start to the season from the giddy heights of 5th place and a Europa League berth. Wins over Hertha and Mainz at Borussia Park and a 3-3 draw with Bochum in week 1 were offset by a 3-0 drubbing in Bremen but the squad largely assembled by Meier seems set up sufficiently to hold their own at this level. Games against Nürnberg and Hoffenheim will be a test of their temperament as the competition heats up in the autumn.

FSV Mainz 05

Serious injuries sustained by both 1st and 2nd choice goalkeepers against Mönchengladbach on Friday night dampened the mood at the end of what turned out to be a hugely productive and entertaining month for the supporters of Mainz. New manager Thomas Tuchel has had to contend with a tough early fixture list but his players have responded with a win and 2 draws from their opening 4 games. The highlight was undoubtedly their astonishing conquest of Bayern Munich on matchday 3, the 2-1 scoreline fully deserved by the home side and their fans now have a moment to savour from this season whatever happens in May. Draws with Leverkusen and Hannover also provided confidence before the setback versus Gladbach at the weekend. But the new boys should not be disheartened as they have played some scintillating stuff at times, with imposing Burkina Faso international striker Aristide Bance terrorizing defences on a regular basis and the club awaiting meetings with Hertha Berlin and Bochum from a comfortable 11th position.

1 FC Nürnberg

Nürnberg are back in the top tier of German football once again after a 1-year sojourn in the 2nd division but they have not started out in a particularly convincing manner. They lie 17th in the table and have just 2 draws to their name as of September 1st, the low point coming during a 0-2 home defeat to Hannover in week 3. The 46,000 sell-out crowd at the easyCredit-Stadion on day 1 were unfortunate to see their side go down 1-2 to Schalke after a spirited display but they would have been far less impressed with their side’s showing against Hannover, while draws with Frankfurt and Stuttgart have also failed to convince of the team’s ability to avoid slipping back down come May. It may be up to the experienced heads of players such as midfielder Marek Mintal and Greek forward Angelos Charisteas to negotiate a path to safety from now until then. Next up is Mönchengladbach where the passionate home support will expect a far better showing, before they travel to take on Bayern in Bavaria.

Hannover 96

The first managerial casualty of the season came in Hannover where Dieter Hecking parted company with the club just 2 games into the new campaign. Extended periods of pressure amid unrest within the squad and the stands seemed to have rendered his position untenable long before he was replaced by former youth team coach Andreas Bergmann, who has been appointed on a caretaker basis until the end of the season. Hannover were beaten in Berlin by a very average Hertha side before being held to a depressing draw with Mainz in front of their own fans immediately before Hecking walked. Since then the team has been reborn, led by the evergreen Jiri Stajner, and a marginal loss to Hoffenheim at the AWD-Arena was preceded by a justified 2-0 win in Nürnberg. Games against Werder Bremen and Borussia Dortmund are fast approaching, however, and the next crisis is never too far over the horizon in Hannover it seems.

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim

Last season’s Herbstmeister Hoffenheim built their early-season success of 2008 upon an unquenchable thirst for goals, Vedad Ibisevic grabbing 18 of their 42 in just 17 matches played before Christmas. Unforunately, having returned from over 6 months out with knee ligament damage, the Serbian centre forward has found more goals hard to come by, and his team have notched just 2 in their opening 4 fixtures. Coach Ralf Rangwick can still console himself by reflecting on the wise purchase of Timo Hildebrand in January, as the pressure on his side to find the back of the net has been eased considerably by the former German international stopper’s exploits between the sticks, in co-ordination with the efforts of new recruit from Hertha, Josip Simunic, in central defence. Having conceded just 1 goal so far has helped keep momentum going with the team poised in 10th amid a challenging set of fixtures, a point apiece gained from games against Bayern and Schalke, and defeat by the slightest of margins in Leverkusen rectified by a win over Hannover by the same scoreline 2 weeks later. Bochum and Gladbach are their next 2 opponents.

VfB Stuttgart

If Stuttgart had been offered 30 million euros for Mario Gomez a year ago they may well have bitten Bayern or anyone else’s arm clean off. However, after a run of form under Markus Babbel that saw the German international into the runner-up spot for Fußballer des Jahres, it was with some reluctance that they allowed their star striker to fly south in the summer. Babbel has put together a strong squad, though, and with Pavel Pogrebnyak signed from St. Petersburg along with the lesser-known Alessandro Riedle, 18, from Zurich, there is certainly hope for the future of the frontline. Add to that the big-match caliber of Alexander Hleb, back on loan from Barcelona to the club where he made his name, and the resurgent side who finished 3rd last time look ready to battle for big honours in 2010. Results have not been quite as complimentary, as injury to Hleb and the time required for Pogrebnyak to settle in have hampered Stuttgart, and since being outclassed by Wolfsburg on day 1, they have only beaten lowly Freiburg, with only draws having been taken from Dortmund and Nürnberg, and Köln and Hamburg next to come.

FC Bayern München

New coach Louis van Gaal’s exhilarating acquisition of countryman Arjen Robben from Real Madrid at the end of August should bolster Bayern’s attack and give an already top-heavy group even greater options going forward. “Robery” is the term being used to describe the relationship between Robben and Frenchman Franck Ribery and that is what it must feel like to many. Bayern now boast an attack of Miroslav Klose, Luca Toni, Mario Gomez (signed from Stuttgart), Ivica Olic (formerly of Hamburg), Alexander Baumjohann (ex-Mönchengladbach) and Thomas Müller (an exciting youth product) supplemented by Ribery, Robben and Bastian Schweinsteiger and supported by new signings Anatoliy Tymoschchuk and Daniel Pranjic (from Zenit St. Petersburg and Heerenveen respectively). Therefore, when the Bavarians lost to Mainz the result was understandably met with great joy, as well as enthusiasm for another unpredictable Bundesliga season in which Bayern might, conceivably, not win it. Again.

That was before the recruitment of Robben. Within 17 minutes of his debut the Dutchman had come off the bench and scored twice to rubber-stamp a victory over Champions Wolfsburg (assisted by Ribery - another substitute) effectively nullifying the loss in Mainz as well as the two draws against Hoffenheim and Werder that preceded it and turning the season on its head. If Robben stays fit, and that is a big if, Munich could have the title wrapped up early enough to afford placing sole focus on the Champions League knockout stages in February. Dortmund away will be the next test for Robery and Bayern followed by Nürnberg at the Allianz Arena. Robben’s 1st contribution took them from 16th to 7th place. Who knows where the next one might lead?

Build-up to the Bundesliga

The top teams in Germany geared up for this season’s big kick-off with the 1st round of the DFB-Pokal (German FA Cup) this week, with the holders putting in a 5-star performance in the capital.

Cup holders Werder Bremen visited newly promoted 2nd division outfit Eisern Union at their recently renovated Alte Försterei stadium in Berlin on Sunday, facing what appeared a tricky encounter. But any potential banana-skin was casually sidestepped as 3 goals in the opening half-hour put paid to their hosts’ hopes of making the game anything other than a stroll in the sun for Thomas Schaaf’s team.


1. FC Union Berlin vs Werder Bremen 2.8.09 im Stadion an der alten Försterei

After a slight delay caused by an avalanche of streamers threatening to engulf Bremen stopper Tim Wiese’s penalty area before kick-off, the boisterous home support was temporarily subdued as Werder took Union apart with 3 clinical first half finishes.

Ivory Coast international Boubacar Sanogo got the ball rolling in the 10th minute as he beat a man on the edge of the box and planted a shot that might have been saved between goalkeeper and post following great work from new signing Marko Marin in the middle.

A Thorsten Frings corner then created mayhem in the Berlin ranks, allowing Naldo to stab home the 2nd from close range on 20 minutes. And when Portuguese forward Hugo Almeida easily beat the offside trap and laid the ball square for his strike partner Sanogo to tap into an empty net for his 2nd and Werder’s 3rd the contest seemed well and truly over as we approached the half-hour mark.

Werder then took their foot off the pedal and were almost punished when Wiese was called into action early in the 2nd half, making a smart stop at the feet of star striker Karim Benyamina to preserve his clean sheet. Then, amid a flurry of late substitutions that stifled the football on show if not the atmosphere in the stands, neuzugang Marcelo Moreno opened his account for the club, forcing in a loose ball having rounded the keeper 5 minutes from the end, before duly doubling his tally in the closing moments by drilling home at the near post after being put through by the impressive Philipp Bargfrede to make it 5-0 and round off a pleasing afternoon for the visitors.

17 Bundesliga sides made it into the 2nd round relatively unscathed, although Hertha Berlin were taken to extra time by Preußen Münster and Hamburg even required penalty kicks to see off Fortuna Düsseldorf after a thrilling 3-3 draw on Monday night. Hannover 96 did succumb, however, 3-1 to lowly Eintracht Trier, who registered the biggest shock of the tournament so far on Sunday.

Here is a full run-down of the results from the 1st Hauptrunde (main round) of the 2009/10 DFB-Pokal:

VfL Osnabrück - Hansa Rostock 2:1
SV Babelsberg 03 - Bayer Leverkusen 0:1
VfB Lübeck - FSV Mainz 05 2:1 a.e.t
FC Ingolstadt - FC Augsburg 1:2
Eintr. Braunschweig - 1. FC Kaiserslautern 0:1
SV Wehen Wiesbaden - VfL Wolfsburg 1:4
Dynamo Dresden - 1. FC Nürnberg 0:3
SG S. Großaspach - VfB Stuttgart 1:4
SC Paderborn - 1860 München 0:1
SpVgg Weiden - Borussia Dortmund 1:3
SV Elversberg - SC Freiburg 0:2
FSV Frankfurt - Bor. Mönchengladbach 1:2
SpVgg Unterhaching - Arminia Bielefeld 0:3
Kickers Emden - 1. FC Köln 0:3
TSV G. Windeck - Schalke 04 0:4
1. FC Magdeburg - Energie Cottbus 1:3
Tennis Borussia Berlin - Karlsruher SC 0:2
Wacker Burghausen - Rot-Weiss Ahlen 5:6
Preußen Münster - Hertha BSC Berlin 1:3 a.e.t
1. FC Union Berlin - Werder Bremen 0:5
FC Oberneuland - 1899 Hoffenheim 0:2
FC 08 Villingen - FC St. Pauli 0:2 a.e.t
SC Conc. Hamburg - TuS Koblenz 0:4
VfB Speldorf - Rot-Weiß Oberhausen 0:3
Rot-Weiß Erfurt - MSV Duisburg 1:2
Wormatia Worms - SpVgg Greuther Fürth 0:1 a.e.t
Torgelower SV Greif - Alemannia Aachen 1:4
Eintracht Trier - Hannover 96 3:1
SpVgg Neckarelz - Bayern München 1:3
Kickers Offenbach - Eintracht Frankfurt 0:3
Sportfreunde Lotte - VfL Bochum 0:1
Fortuna Düsseldorf - Hamburger SV 3:3 Hamburg won 4-1 on pens

Blighty to the Bundesliga

In light of the Premier League again being (unofficially) voted the world's best league this year, having been once more outscored by their 18-team equivalent from Germany, this report takes a closer look at the links between the top flights of two of football's superpowers.

Jens Lehmann has had an encouraging season between the Stuttgart sticks, keeping more clean sheets than anyone in the top-flight this term. The former Arsenal stopper shelved plans for his autobiography, “Warum eigentlich immer Mich?” (Why always me?) with sights set on regaining his German number 1 jersey before South Africa 2010 – part of the build-up to his 41st birthday celebrations. Those of you who remember the crazed, curly-haired keeper fondly despite the tantrums and histrionics will be pleased to hear he has forsaken none of these aspects of his game since his move back home. In fact, if anything he has nurtured them, becoming an ace of antagonists-a master of his trade.

There was an incident. Hoffenheim midfielder Sejad Salihovic lost his boot contesting a 50-50 inside the Mercedes Benz Arena centre-circle, but boldly adhered to the old adage of ‘playing to the whistle’ - unaware of the predator lurking in the shadows. Out of nowhere, Lehmann lurched forward, racing fully 40 yards to covertly obtain his fellow professional’s footwear, possibly on his tip-toes. All I can say for sure is that his actions went undetected by absolutely everyone. Replays show the German collecting the shoe, scuttling back with it and slinging it over his shoulder, onto the roof of his net, before ignoring his victim’s desperate search, which went on until long after the game had restarted.

Hoffenheim coach Ralf Rangwick called it “the most unsporting thing I have ever seen”. And he cannot be too far wrong. But it was vintage Lehmann. To make matters worse, moments later Hoffenheim were awarded a penalty, Salihovic stepped up to take it, with the contest’s last kick. Guess who won the mental battle. The game finished 3-3.

Claudio Pizarro and Andriy Voronin are still employed by English clubs (at time of writing) but they have both experienced such extraordinary highs and lows this year, with Werder Bremen and Hertha Berlin respectively, that the Premeir League must seem a distant memory. Both have made impressive inroads into the Bundesliga goal-scoring charts, Pizarro notching an obscene 17 goals to Voronin’s equally disturbing 11. However, both have endured traumatic times, too – the Peruvian’s coming by way of extreme wastefulness and suspension for flailing arms, the Ukrainian’s in the form of a broken cheekbone suffered at John Terry’s hands at Wembley as well as a 3-match ban for crudely kicking out at an opponent in April.

Voronin, 29, hurtled from Hero to Zero, from being Hertha’s “Mann mit dem goldenen Zopf” (man with the golden ponytail) and commanding a 15m € price tag to being ruled out of a huge chunk of his side’s doomed run-in. 30-year-old Pizarro’s fall from grace, while equally dramatic, may have longer lasting consequences.

He shocked the world by scoring twice at the San Siro to send AC Milan crashing out of the UEFA Cup and although Werder lost the final he still faces a DFB Cup final vs Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday. But eyebrows were raised earlier this year when rumours of tax evasion and involvement in the player black market in Peru surfaced, the player allegedly having netted more than a scoring bonus for his part in bringing countryman Roberto Silva to Bremen back in 2001. This, added to previous reports of “flesh-fests” emanating from South America, may convince Werder to ditch the pitiful Peruvian this summer, whereas Voronin appears to be in demand both in Berlin and by former boss Rafael Benitez in Liverpool.

The ludicrously large representation of former Tottenham Hotspur players in the Bundesliga reflects the North London club’s revolving-door transfer policy. The likes of Paul Stalteri, Thimothee Atouba, Kevin Prince-Boateng and Gilberto have come and gone to the extent that no-one now really knows their whereabouts. We know they’re turning out for/captaining neglected XI’s somewhere. We’re just not sure whether it’s the second strings of a reserve team or a disabled team we should be searching. (Stalteri is, in fact, a valued member within the Borussia Mönchengladbach 1st team setup, but how he didn’t single-handedly take them down is beyond me.)

The team with the most Premier League input in Germany is Hannover 96, carrying 3 recruits – ex-Crystal Palace defender Valerian Ismael, his former team-mate, previously a Birmingham City employee and Chelsea supersub, Mikael Forssell and the recently retired Michael Tarnat. Up until this month the former Manchester City defender was the division’s oldest player at 39, 2 full weeks older than Jens Lehmann. When Sergio Pinto scored Hannover’s final goal of the campaign on Saturday he placed a number 18 shirt on the turf and bowed down before it in recognition of the services of Tarnat, who missed the match through injury.

Of those players registered in Germany currently being linked with sides in England, Wolfsburg’s Edin Dzeko, 23, seemed the best bet until the Bosnian striker stated his preference for a move to Serie A, perhaps to follow Brazilian Diego, who moves to Juventus next month for 29m € despite huge interest from English clubs. The most high-profile switch would be that of Bayern Munich’s Franck Ribery to Manchester United but this would only take place in the event that Cristiano Ronaldo finally moves to Madrid this summer. The Frenchman would be a more than adequate replacement for he has half the speed but twice the trickery of the Portuguese and the temperament to boot.

Sami Hyypia will transfer to Bayer Leverkusen in July, as advertised by an Anfield crowd surprisingly saddedned, apparently suffering from their version of a slow news day, with nothing else left to play for this season. Otherwise, I have only come across one seemingly unsolvable jigsaw puzzle containing the pieces: “Glen Johnson”, “Bayern Munich”, “15 million” and “pounds Sterling”. It’s kept me up at night.

Other past Premiership players to have begun this season on the books of a Bundesliga outfit include: Werder Bremen’s Petri Pasanen (once of Portsmouth), Bayern Munich’s Daniel van Buyten (Manchester City), Bayer Leverkusen’s Vratislav Gresko (Blackburn Rovers), VfB Stuttgart’s Thomas Hitzlsperger (Aston Villa) and Khalid Boulahrouz (Chelsea), Hamburg’s Guy Demel (Arsenal), Hertha Berlin’s Jaroslav Drobny and FC Köln’s Pierre Wome (both Fulham), Eintracht Frankfurt’s Junichi Inamoto (Fulham, Arsenal, Cardiff City AND West Bromwich Albion) Arminia Bielefeld’s Nico Herzig (Wimbledon) as well as Köln’s Kevin Mckenna (formerly of Heart of Midlothian).

So, in case you were wondering, that's where they all are. And that's where i'll be come August - on the edge of my seat as always. See you next season.

Bye Bye Bundesliga (Week 34)

With 4 teams immersed in the relegation dog-fight, 3 teams engrossed in the title race and 2 teams involved in the battle for the final Europa League spot, the Bundesliga promised to provide a tense finale to 1 of its more memorable campaigns. Never too tense to produce another torrent of goals, mind.

Die Meisterschale (The League Shield)

Vfl Wolfsburg 5 – 1 SV Werder Bremen (30,000)

“So sehen Sieger aus!“ (That’s how Champions look!) sang the Wolfsburg crowd at the final whistle as they came to terms with their club’s very 1st Bundesliga crown at the not-so-grand old age of 64 with a thumping win over Werder at the VW-Arena on Saturday. The city has no balcony from which the trophy can be held aloft, no room or even cabinet in which it can be stored but 8 big screens around town allowed them to witness “der Leitwolf” (lead wolf) Felix Magath become the 8th manager to win the German Championship with 2 clubs and strikers Grafite and Edin Dzeko beat the combined total of Gerd Müller and Uli Hoeneß to set a new combined seasonal goalscoring record, Grafite claiming the title of “Torschützenkönig” (King of goal scorers) with 28 from 25 appearances.
Zvjezdan Misimovic got them off and running in the 5th minute – fitting as he has been the catalyst for much of their all-conquering attacking play this season – and once Grafite was off the mark for the afternoon and Werder’s Sebastien Prödl had turned the Brazilian’s cross into his own net after 26 minutes, it was merely a matter of how many this team could conjure up in its bid to highlight the overwhelming supremacy it has recently enjoyed over the rest of the division.
Werder’s only consolation ahead of their DFB-Pokal Final against Leverkusen next Saturday was that Diego managed to mark his farewell Bundesliga appearance with a well-taken goal after Peruvian playboy Claudio Pizarro found his South-American counterpart in the box with a back-heel and Diego rolled it to his left before slipping it under the keeper with his right for his 12th of another mesmerising season.
But Wolfsburg were not to be outdone and further goals from Grafite and Dzeko sealed the shield by an emphatic margin to render events in Bavaria inconsequential.

FC Bayern München 2 – 1 Vfb Stuttgart (69,000)

So they had to settle for 2nd. But the Bavarians did their bit, beating Stuttgart at the Allianz Arena on Saturday to maintain an ounce of pressure on the boys above them. Goals came from Khalid Boulahrouz, the former Chelsea defender turning a Franck Ribery centre into his own net, and Mark van Bommel’s 2nd of a disappointing season for the Dutchman after Ribery nutmegged the hapless Boulahrouz and van Bommel did the same to Jens Lehmann with an hour played. Mario Gomez almost instantly hit back for the guests with his 24th of an incredible season and nearly produced an equalizer moments later only to see his effort drift agonizingly past the far post. The German international seems destined to make the Allianz his permanent home this summer as talks of a 30 million Euro switch have been welcomed by the striker.
There was still time this term for 1 more unsightly miss from Gomez’s opposite number Luca Toni. Boulahrouz seemingly tried to make the day worse for himself by air-kicking a slow pullback when attempting to clear and the ball fell at the feet of the inconceivably irritating Italian, who felt no need to control the ball but instead simply donkey kicked into the “Tribune” (stand) for one final dose of what we can all now safely refer to as “a Toni”.


Der Abstiegskampf (The Relegation Battle)

Karlsruher SC 4 – 0 Hertha BSC (30,600)

Relegation had loomed large for much of Karlsruhe’s campaign but though they finally bowed out they went down swinging on Saturday with a whopping win over Champions League chasing Hertha at the Wildpark Stadion. A win for the away side would have been enough to earn at least 3rd spot but they froze under pressure and forfeited their earlier gains in a meek surrender that cast them into the Europa League for 2009/10. Sebastien Freis and skipper Maik Franz made their mark on the scoresheet and Joshua Kennedy – arguably the least dangerous, least productive ‘striker’ to have graced this or any league this season – plundered a second half double to allow the hosts to leave the division with dignity intact.

DSC Arminia Bielefeld 2 – 2 Hannover 96 (27,300)

4 wins all season did for Bielefeld as their inability to turn chances into goals was again to be their undoing against Hannover at the Schüco Arena on Saturday. They went ahead as early as the 2nd minute through a Mario Eggimann own goal and when Hannover’s German number 1 Robert Enke went off bearing a shocking 15cm wound in his skull the Gods seemed to be with Arminia as they stood in 16th place in the ‘Live Table’. Then came a diving header from Jari Stajner and a Sergio Pinto strike, set up by Mikkael Forssell, which the Portuguese celebrated by taking the shirt of the missing Michael Tarnat, laying it on the turf and bowing before it, in honour of the retirement of the league’s oldest player to complete the comeback. At 1-1 deposed ‘King’ Artur Wichniarek missed a sitter and although the striker managed to equalize in stoppage time it proved too little too late as his side finished rock bottom of the table. Even in the wake of such a disastrous outcome the dismissal of interim manager Jörg Berger after just 1 game seemed harsh, as Arminia now contemplate life down under without a leader in tow.

Energie Cottbus 3 – 0 Bayer 04 Leverkusen (20,140)

With 3 attackers injured, Cottbus faced a tough task to obtain at least 16th place and merit a stay of execution against Cup Finalists Bayer Leverkusen at the Stadion der Freundschaft on Saturday, especially with Jiayi Shao squandering opportunities whenever called upon. Events turned when Bayer’s Arturo Vidal was dismissed for hacking an opponent wildly from behind when on a yellow just before the mid-point. This galvanized the home side and in particular Ervin Skela, who set up 2 Emil Jula goals and 1 for Stiven Rivic before skying a penalty that would have capped a fine performance from midfield. Energie must now face 3rd placed 2nd Bundesliga outfit 1. FC Nürnberg over 2 legs, taking place this Thursday and Sunday, to retain top-flight status for another year.

Borussia Mönchengladbach 1 – 1 Borussia Dortmund (54,067)

Gladbach coach Hans Meier is a veteran of events such as ‘Survival Saturday', as Sky would surely have called it, having saved his side before in 2003 and also rescued Nürnberg, as well as winning them the DFB Cup, in 2006. So he knew not to proclaim “mission accomplished” with his team mathematically insecure going into their clash with major rivals Dortmund at Borussia Park on Saturday. Dortmund had lost just 5 games all season – a tremendous testament to the team put together by trainer Jürgen Klopp – and a late surge had them within reach of a European place. Unfortunately, needing to match the result of Hamburg, they fell behind to a free header from Bonfim da Costa Dante approaching the hour mark and a Jakub Blaszczykowski leveler proved insufficient in their quest for European football next year. Gladbach, however, defied all odds to stay up in spite of having been bottom at Christmas thanks largely to the appointment and subsequent signings and input of the experienced Meier.

Eintracht Frankfurt 2 – 3 Hamburger SV (51,500)

Hamburg left it late to secure the last Europa League spot as they sought to amend the legacy of Ajax-bound “drei-viertel” (three-quarter) coach Martin Jol at the Commerzbank Arena on Saturday. David Jarolim’s drilled effort from outside the “Strafraum” (penalty box) and Ivica Olic’s last goal for the club before leaving for Bavaria seemed to have stopped the rot after 4 points from their last 5 games and 3 away defeats on the trot had undermined what had been an admirable campaign on all fronts up until the home straight. But when Alexander Meier and Caio demolished their side’s deficit within 4 2nd half minutes Dortmund were heading for Europe in Hamburg’s stead. It took a last minute Piotr Trochowski scorcher to regain 5th spot and spare Jol’s blushes as the nearly-man at least left the club looking forward to an impending continental adventure next season.

Schalke 04 2 – 3 TSG 1899 Hoffenheim (61,673)

Sacked by Schalke 3 years ago, Hoffenheim coach Ralf Rangwick had not been back to the Veltins Arena until last Saturday. When Demba Ba opened the scoring with his 14th of an immense season, particularly in the wake of the injury sustained by his strike partner Vedad Ibisevic in January, Rangwick must have wondered why he didn’t visit more often. The hosts rallied, though, to temporarily bring those bitter memories back to the surface, Mladen Krstajic and Jefferson Farfan goals turning the game on its head before the interval. Regrettably, the only good news for Schalke fans at the weekend came in the knowledge that the season is now over and that they can now regroup under the probable stewardship of Felix Magath over the summer. Carlos Eduardo hit back for the visitors in the 49th and 89th minutes, latterly from the spot with seconds remaining, to salvage a 7th placed finish from the wreckage of their season and end their opponents’ term on a dismal note.

FC Köln 1 – 1 VfL Bochum (50,000)

Having pulled clear of “das Schmutzige Grau der Tabelle” (the dirty grey end of the table) in recent weeks, VfL Bochum aimed to end their season on a high at Köln’s Rhein Energie Stadion at the weekend. Diego Klimowicz, one of the signings of the season regardless of an injury that kept him out during a key period, broke the deadlock with his 4th of the season in the 18th minute before his contribution was cancelled out by an Anthor Yahia own goal 6 minutes later. Both teams will be satisfied with safety as reward for their endeavours this term. Köln even afforded long-serving midfielder Matthias Scherz a 2nd half substitute appearance sporting the captain’s armband and the stalwart almost marked the occasion with a goal but had to settle for a standing ovation in memory of his 374 games and 82 goals spanning 10 years of loyal service to the club.

Squeaky Bum Bundesliga (Week 33)

After the drama of “English Week” (1 in which midweek fixtures take place) Saturday’s matches went a long way towards deciding both the outcome of the Championship race and the order of relegation places in Germany with 1 round still to negotiate. While 4 teams remain mathematically capable of claiming the 1st Division crown, there is now a clear front-runner. At the other end only a statistical nightmare can drag those above the drop zone back into trouble but there is still everything to play for regarding the chance for redemption through the newly re-introduced relegation play-offs.

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim 2 – 2 FC Bayern München (30,150)

A scintillating 1st half saw all 4 of the afternoon’s goals scored and left Bayern in the daunting position of facing a trip to rivals Vfb Stuttgart next weekend knowing that if all goes well they could be Champions and if all else fails they can end up 4th. Hosts Hofffenheim were highly charged at the Rhein-Neckar Arena on Saturday, the ill-tempered reverse fixture having culminated in an ill-deserved point for the Bavarians in December to temporarily deny Hoffenheim the Winter Championship. Hoffenheim are now 7th but remain motivated under coach Ralf Rangwick and after going behind to a goal from the superb Franck Ribery on 16 minutes they clawed their way back into the contest firstly through Demba Ba’s 13th of the season and then Carlos Eduardo’s 28th minute effort to complete the turnaround. However, hearts were to be broken once again as Ribery teased a ball onto the head of Luca Toni, who equalised on the stroke of half-time.

Hannover 96 0 – 5 Vfl Wolfsburg (49,000)

The scoreline should really have read Grafite 2 Edin Dzeko 3 at the AWD-Arena as Wolfsburg’s frontline tore apart their hosts’ defence from 1st minute to last on Saturday. Records remain in freefall at the feet of the Wolves this season and the goalscoring feats of their front 2 represent the 1st time in Bundesliga history that 2 players from the same club have totaled more than 20 goals over a league campaign.
Grafite’s 25th and 26th of the season were both brought about by shoddy defending but were met with identically ice-cold finishes and while a pair of free headers were clinically dispatched by Dzeko in much the same fashion it was his 1st that was the most eye-catching, as he chested a whipped cross and executed a half-volley on the swivel that was in from the moment it had left the laces of his boot. He now has 25 to his name, an incredible 18 of them having come in the 2nd half of the season.
Wolfsburg’s biggest ever away win was witnessed by 8,000 travelling fans and leaves them on the brink of their 1st ever league title, requiring only a draw at home to Werder Bremen next Saturday to clinch the coveted shield. Their opponents may have other priorities as they will play cup finals either side of their game at the VW-Arena, although ironically Werder are the only side to have won in Wolfsburg this season, destroying Felix Magath’s team 5-2 in the DFB-Cup late last year.

Vfb Stuttgart 2 – 0 FC Energie Cottbus (55,500)

The last game at the Mercedes Benz Arena in its current format, before it undergoes wholesale changes in the summer, saw home skipper Thomas Hitzlsperger give his team the lead with just under 20 minutes on the clock before the injured Mario Gomez came off the bench to set up strike partner Cacau for the decisive second with 12 minutes to play and claim a well-earned 2-0 win over Cottbus, all but securing their opponents’ fate in the bottom 3. Had Jiayi Shao not hit the bar from the attack directly preceeding the second goal then the visitors may have snatched a dramatic draw but, as it stands, they can only hope for a place in the relegation play-offs after succumbing to a sucker-punch on Saturday. Stuttgart go into their final game at the Allianz Arena knowing that a win and a Wolfsburg slip-up could still hand them the title and enable them to present Markus Babbel as the leading candidate for Manager of the Year, having taken over in December with his side in 11th.

Hertha BSC 0 – 0 FC Schalke 04 (74,244)

For those unfamiliar with the concept of a “Stadion-Runde” (Stadium Round) it occurs when a player buys a beer for 74,000 people after losing a bet. Pal Dardai was the generous sole who paid for 55,000 litres of beer to be delivered as free alcohol was consumed and replica shirts dished out to 1 whole stand at the Olympiastadion on Saturday. The sell-out crowd would have been disappointed by the result, 1 which sees their side fall off the pace in their hunt for the title, all but ending their hopes of silverware for another year, but not by the performance. Hertha were attractive to watch, free-flowing and seemingly walking through the Schalke ranks at will in the 1st period. However, they could not break through despite their domination, deliverer Dardai cruelly wasting their clearest opportunity, and they must now win in Karlsruhe on the last day and hope that Bayern and Stuttgart draw in order to claim 2nd spot and thus an automatic Champions League berth.

Borussia Dortmund 6 – 0 DSC Arminia Bielefeld (80,200)

Dortmund have been ably supported this year by an average attendance of over 74,000 and yet another sell-out was richly rewarded with their biggest win in 13 years on Saturday. Opponents Bielefeld had missed a hatful of chances early on and were much the better side but once home skipper Sebastien Kehl had nicked in ahead of the onrushing Dennis Eilhoff to score the first of his 2 goals a minute before the break Arminia completely capitulated in the second period to almost certainly miss out on automatic survival come next weekend. They will aim to avoid another thrashing of this magnitude against Hannover on Saturday and retain their play-off place after additional goals from Tamas Hajnal, Nelson Valdez, Tinga and the pick of the bunch from substitute Mohamed Zidan condemned them to an embarrassing reversal at Signal Iduna Park. Dortmund are dreaming of Europe following another all-star display of attacking prowess from Jürgen Klopp’s men.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen 5 – 0 Borussia Mönchengladbach (43,000)

Only a minor miracle can thwart Gladbach’s bid for safety next Saturday but by losing heavily in Dusseldorf last Saturday they went some way towards proving this eventuality could be less implausible than at first glance of the table. Bayer had claimed only 4 points from their 7 previous encounters at their temporary home but Stefan Kießling, Patrick Helmes, Gonzalo Castro, Michal Kadlec and a Dante Bonfim own goal all troubled the scorers against Gladbach to render this particular record a farce. Excitable away fans uprooted entire rows of seats in order to make more room for standing at their end as their raucousness was replaced with an ever-increasing air of dismay as each goal put their top-flight status further back into jeopardy, after back-to-back last minute winners in their 2 previous matches had seen them pull away from the danger area.

Vfl Bochum 2 – 0 Eintracht Frankfurt (30,420)

Officials have dished out a combined total of 146 yellow cards to these two sides this season and with death threats having been sent to Bochum players by their own fans prior to Saturday’s contest this promised to be a tense occasion all round. But Bochum shrugged off any sense of pressure to secure a position of safety with a comfortable win by a margin which could have been wider had it not been for visiting keeper Markus Proll who had an awesome day between the sticks despite conceding from Vahid Hashamian in the 1st half and the sorely missed Diego Klimowicz in the 2nd, ensuring “Jo-Jo Bochum” remain recoiled at the top end of their spectrum for another year.

SV Werder Bremen 1 – 3 Karlsruher SC (39,219)

The departure of arguably the league’s greatest player to Juventus this summer will undoubtedly be mourned by many, nowhere more so than in Bremen, where Diego made his final appearance at the Weserstadion against bottom club Karlsruher on Saturday. He failed to finish on a high despite delighting the crowd with some classic trickery in the 1st half, as his side somehow slumped to a heavy defeat at the hands of the league’s lowest ranked team. They were 2 down at half-time to a side who had scored just 21 goals all season and had not scored 3 times away in 11 years, and their number 1 Tim Wiese, “der Elfmeter-Töter” (the penalty-killer), had also turned away a spot-kick before Lars Stindl struck twice to double his tally for the season. Alexander Iashvili added another 10 minutes after the restart and Hugo Almeida pulled 1 back for the hosts but it all proved irrelevant to Karlsruher’s hopes of surviving without the need for a play-off, as news came in of the result from Bochum and the team who have been bottom for much of the season must now hope for a major turn-up at home to Hertha Berlin next week just to make the match against the 3rd best team in the Second Division.

HSV Hamburg 0 – 1 1. FC Köln (57,000)

Flowers were offered to Ivica Olic to mark his last appearance at the HSH Nordbank Arena to add to “Alles Gute” wishes from the fans in anticipation of his long-awaited move south to Bayern Munich next month. His sons should fit in seamlessly as they are remarkably named Luca and Toni, their father looking set to partner the infamously infantile Italian next term. Unfortunately his team-mates failed to give him a fitting send-off as their season continued to peter out by falling to Fabrice Ehret’s 3rd goal of the season for Köln in the 9th minute on Saturday.

Keeping Abreast of the Bundesliga (Week 31)

Borussia Dortmund 4 – 0 Karlsruher SC 80,100

Statistics often fail to show the whole story but in the case of Karlsruhe they tell a tale of woe that is unlikely to twist and turn but bound for disappointment and demotion later this month. From 432 shots this season they have netted 21 times and an 18th scoreless outing was always on the cards at the sold-out Signal Iduna Park on Saturday. Dortmund have won 7 games running and, in doing so, have gained 2 points fewer than Karlsruhe have amassed all season. Goals from Nuri Sahin, Felipe Santana and Alexander Frei adding insult to injury following Jakub Blaszczykowski’s cracking near post volley opened the floodgates after 25 minutes.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen 2 – 2 DSC Arminia Bielefeld 23,150

After 390 days out injured Bernd Schneider, 35, took his place on the Bayer bench for the visit of Bielefeld but was powerless to prevent the guests taking a point from their temporary LTU Arena home in Düsseldorf, although a late Patrick Helmes strike did at least ensure a share of the spoils for the hosts on Friday night. Stefan Kießling had put Leverkusen in front before goals from Radim Kucera and Robert Tesche (all headers) had turned the game on its head.

Hertha BSC 2 – 0 Vfl Bochum 1848 71,323

“Das Runde muss durchs Eckige” (The round must go through the square) is the current battle cry of the Hertha fans in reference to the League Shield’s planned parade route through the Brandenburg Gate this month. Despite trainer Lucien Favre’s consistent refusal to get carried away it remains a distinct possibility. Bold tactics from the coach against Bochum at the Olympiastadion on Saturday were rewarded with scores from 2 out of the 3 selected strikers, Marko Pantelic notching his 7th of the campaign and Raffael his 6th to move Hertha into 3rd, keeping them right in the thick of the title race and Bochum immersed in a tense relegation battle.

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim 2 – 0 1. FC Köln 30,150

A stadium announcement and a post-match apology from Köln coach Christoph Daum were required at Hoffenheim’s Rhein Neckar Arena on Saturday after vicious taunts were directed at home team owner Dietmar Hopp. Hoffenheim had the last laugh, however, as a Sejad Salihovic set-piece special and a riproaring effort from Demba Ba gave the home side the points, although Boubacar Sanogo did put a late penalty woefully wide, Köln’s Youssef Mohammed having been sent off for the foul in the 78th minute.

Hannover 96 1 – 1 Eintracht Frankfurt 44,855

Referee Perl refused visitors Frankfurt a penalty (à la Florent Malouda vs Barcelona) at Hannover’s AWD Arena on Saturday to deny the guests all 3 points after Arnold Bruggink had given Hannover the lead with his 5th of the season to round off a lovely one-touch move started by Mikkael Forsell’s prodded through-pass on 9 minutes and Ümit Korkmaz’s diving header from a Martin Fenin cross had levelled the scores 3 minutes before the break.

Borussia Mönchengladbach 1 – 0 FC Schalke 04 54,067

If Schalke keep up their current bout of form they will miss out on European football for the first time since the 2000/01 season. They were hard done by at Borussia Park on Sunday, eventually going down to a last-minute Roberto Colautti strike, his 1st of the season, but could not say they had not been warned, having ridden their luck after Manuel Neuer had saved a 1st half Marko Marin spot-kick and Gladbach had wasted an opportunity from an indirect free-kick given for Neuer’s handling of a Halil Altintop back-pass in the 2nd.

SV Werder Bremen 2 – 0 Hamburger SV 42,100

Having been knocked out oft he DFB-Cup on penalties and beaten over 2 legs in the UEFA-Cup - both at the semi-final stage and both in their own back yard – Hamburg were put to the sword by local rivals Werder Bremen for the 4th time in 19 days to effectively rule them out of the title running for another year. Werder’s Portuguese striker Hugo Almeida grabbed both goals at the Weserstadion on Sunday, supported by match-winning performances from midfielders Thorsten Frings and Mesut Özil as the home fans sang “Finale, Whoa-oh-oah” (to the tune of “Vieira”). They also taunted their opponents by tossing around a giant replica of the paper ball thrown onto the field by a Hamburg fan during the UEFA-Cup semi-final 2nd leg on Thursday night, which inadvertently redirected a simple back-pass towards the by-line for a corner, from which Werder snatched the game’s winning goal.
While Hamburg have lost 3 of their last 5 league games in what striker Mladen Petric has called “the worst 2 weeks of my career”, Werder have won 4 home games running but were not helped by their awkward frontman Claudio Pizarro who, having started “auf der Bank” (on the bench) after somehow picking up a knock putting the balls back in the cupboard during training, came on to miss from 3 yards-thwarted by a terrific stop from Frank Rost and his own inability to find the corner from kissing distance.

FC Energie Cottbus 1 – 3 FC Bayern München 22,528

Highly rated 9m € signing from Estudiantes, Jose Ernesto Sosa, put Bayern ahead at the Stadion der Freundschaft on Saturday before Cottbus hit back when a superb Stanislav Angelov bicycle kick was brilliantly kept out by Bayern keeper Hans-Jörg Butt but parried into the path of Ivica Iliev, who rammed home the rebound for the “Ausgleichstreffer” (equaliser). However, the second half belonged to the Bavarians, Martin Demichaelis and Lukas Podolski making the points safe, and could even afford to carry a fluffed penalty from Franck Ribery which was saved well by Cottbus stopper Gerhard Tremmel.

Vfb Stuttgart 4 – 1 Vfl Wolfsburg 55,700

“Spitzenreiter” (Table-toppers) Wolfsburg were dealt a huge blow by up-and-coming Stuttgart at the Mercedes Benz Arena on Saturday, where Mario Gomez became the first man to score 4 in a game for Stuttgart since Jürgen Klinsmann in 1986.
The match had been billed as the “Duell der Topstürmer” (Dual of the top strikers) as Gomez had begun the day level alongside Edin Dzeko on 19 goals with the Bosnian’s team-mate Grafite out in front on 23. 4 Gomez goals – 2 with the head, 1 with the left foot, 1 with the right – later Gomez stood neck and neck with the Brazilian Grafite, Dzeko trailing with 20 after he tucked in what proved to be a consolation for the away team on 37 minutes.
It could have been so different had Cristian Zaccardo not produced yet another candidate for ‘Miss of the Season’ with the score at 2-1. Jens Lehmann spilled and, instead of mopping up from 2 yards, Zaccardo made an almighty mess of the finish to leave his side only a whisker ahead at the top as we enter ‘Squeaky Bum Time’ in the Bundesliga.

Bundesliga Laid Bare

The build-up to Week 30 in the Bundesliga has been overshadowed by Bayern Munich’s sudden sacking of coach Jürgen Klinsmann as well as rumours linking Felix Magath, boss of league leaders Wolfsburg, with the vacant Schalke 04 post, as the managerial merry-go-round begins to get into full swing in Germany.

Jupp Heynckes, scorer of 220 goals from 871 Bundesliga games in his playing days, took charge of “die Bayern” for the first time on Saturday, ironically against the club for whom he made the majority of those appearances - Borussia Mönchengladbach. Munich’s former assistant coach proved a breath of fresh air for those fans proclaiming through banner “Danke Uli (Hoeneß – the manager who deposed of Klinsmann) für die Erlösung” meaning ‘Thanks for the Salvation’ – a strong word in the sectarian South. Heynckes was to oversee a dearth of quality disguised at the end of the first half by a flurry of goals, Bastien Schweinsteiger setting the ball rolling with his 5th of the season in the 33rd minute before Hamit Altintop capped off a fine individual display by creaming a crackerjack of a goal past Logan Bailly 8 minutes later. Gladbach had leveled with a penalty from Filip Daems on 38 minutes after Bayern keeper Hans-Jorg Butt had fumbled on a routine manoeuvre and sent the onrushing Roel Brouwers tumbling in the area.

But that was to be the high point for the visitors as Bayern flooded forward after the break and were unfortunate that, though never pretty, their flowing football inevitably reached the incapable Italian Luca Toni who at one stage was given the freedom of Bavaria to watch and wait for a dinked Altintop set-up before pulling his head back, throwing his full weight behind the ball and somehow failing to make any sort of contact from 4 yards, reinforcing the belief in his lack of any form of technical awareness as another Bayern chance went begging. Munich remain second with Gladbach second from bottom but both clubs face similarly uncertain futures with newly installed favourite for the Bayern hotseat Louis van Gaal yesterday insisting he would stay in Holland and original target Guus Hiddink proving an unrealistic appointment to say the least.

“Magath – Geld oder Liebe?” (Money or love?) read the sign at the VW-Arena as Wolfsburg trainer Felix Magath continued to fuel speculation by ‘taking the 5th’ to suggestions he is to relinquish his post at the end of the season to take the reins at rivals Schalke 04 in the summer. His counterpart on Saturday, Hoffenheim’s Ralf Rangwick, would appear to be the favourite to succeed Magath and he too refused to commit to his current employers by admitting his disgust at the mediocrity being currently carried out at the club.

The two trainers are experiencing vastly contrasting fortunes of late, however, with Magath’s Wolves sitting atop the pile on a run of 13 successive home wins while Rangwick’s Hoffs are 12 games without a victory and once “der Mann des Tages” (man of the day) Edin Dzeko had broken the deadlock on 65 minutes here it was one-way traffic. The puberty-struck Serbian went on to notch a German hat-trick (all in one half) before his partner-in-crime Grafite scored from the spot in the closing stages, Andreas Beck seeing red for the preceeding foul. Wolfsburg now boast the league’s top two scorers, Grafite having plundered 23 with Dzeko hurtling towards him on 19, level with Bayer Leverkusen’s Patrick Helmes.

Schalke vs Leverkusen was billed as the battle of the “Torwarts” (goalkeepers) as young upstart Manuel Neuer, on the back of an impressive campaign, was upstaged by his more experienced counterpart, Rene Adler - German number 1 Robert Enke’s official understudy - at the Veltins Arena. Adler produced a string of top-drawer stops to preserve Bayer’s lead on Saturday, established after Patrick Helmes’s 19th goal of the season squirmed underneath Neuer and then Renato Augusto beat the young pretender at his near post with less than half an hour gone, Kevin Kuranyi eventually clawing one back in the closing stages, having been denied by Adler on no fewer than 4 previous occasions. With both teams seemingly out of the running for European places, the most significant impact of this result moves “Herbstmeister” Hoffenheim down to a depressing 9th after they were overrun by Wolfsburg on Saturday.

Supporters of Schalke’s nearest rivals Borussia Dortmund travelled to Frankfurt on Saturday with high hopes as 10,000 pitched up to see Jurgen Klopp's unit dismantle their hosts by way of a clinical finish from ‘supersub’ Mohammed Zidan and a Habib Bellaid “Eigentor” (own goal) in the last 10 minutes to secure 3 points for the 6th game running. Apparently, the day that match tickets went on sale Dortmund fans simply snapped up seats online in the home section which borders their allocated area and extended their curve into one entire end of the 51,500 capacity Commerzbank Arena. (If only it were that easy in England!) Their ingenuity was rewarded with a win which probably even allowed them to enjoy a world-class save from opposition keeper Markus Proll to deny Nelson Valdez with his feet in spectacular fashion in the second half. Dortmund are now 6th and while they will be dreaming of Europe next year Frankfurt will be enduring nightmares of competing in Germany’s second tier as they stand a mere 6 points from the drop zone with 4 to play.

Sunday saw FC Köln beat Werder Bremen somewhat fortunately for a crucial 1st win in 6 months at their Rhein Energie Stadion to arrest an alarming recent slide and cement, if not set in stone, their Bundesliga status for next season. Werder had rested key personnel ahead of their UEFA-Cup semi-final 2nd leg in Hamburg on Thursday but still managed to dominate possession for large parts and did create chances, the most inviting of which was wasted by the confidence-stricken Markus Rosenberg in the 12th minute with the goal at his mercy. Werder have only won 3 times in the league since the turn of the year and when Milivoje Novakovic opened the Köln account on 61 minutes with a far-too-close-range finish there was only going to be one outcome. Köln now lie just 4 points off Werder in 10th spot.

The other Sunday game involved two title contenders at the HSH Nordbank Arena as HSV Hamburg pitted their wits against Hertha Berlin. When HSV’s Ivica Olic left Steve von Bergen with the proverbial twisted blood and provided Marcell Jansen with his 3rd goal of the campaign - a personal best - he put his side on course for joint second in the table and Hertha for 5th. Surely a loss for either team would have ended all title aspirations but with Hertha’s hopes hanging by a thread a Gojko Kacar netbuster rose and rocketed into the top corner of Frank Rost’s goal in the 67th minute to leave things all square.

It was a thoroughly enticing game, Piotr Trochowski constantly a threat from set-pieces for the hosts, Cicero probing influentially from the Hertha midfield, the players obviously aware of the finest of lines being trodden by both parties as 4 penalty claims were correctly waved away by the coolest of officials during the course of the 90 minutes. This was very much a day for goalkeepers and Jaroslav Drobny’s superb one-handed diversion of a Joris Mathijsen header in the last minute ensured both teams remained in the fray, with the Berliners 3rd and HSV in 5th, 5 points behind the leaders.

The fight for survival lives on for all 5 sides at the foot of the table after Hannover gained their first away win for over a year thanks to headed Arnold Bruggink and Hanno Balitsch goals on Friday night at VFL Bochum, who recorded their 4th straight home defeat and now face daunting trips to Berlin and Hamburg before the season’s end. A solitary point below Bochum are Energie Cottbus, who could only achieve a scoreless “Unentsheiden” (draw) away to bottom club Karlsruhe, who have scored three goals since October and prop up the rest on 23 points from 30 matches played, 4 points from Cottbus’ position of security.

With Gladbach 17th on 24 points, having been dispatched at the Allianz Arena, Arminia Bielefeld had a chance to extend the gap between themselves and the two teams in the automatic relegation places and did so with a dramatic draw at home to Vfb Stuttgart on Saturday. Bilefeld have only 2 home wins to their name in this campaign and have paraded flags all round the city centre in an attempt to drum up support in their bid to avoid the dreaded relegation play-offs at the end of this month. Having gone behind firstly to Matthieu Delpierre’s 1st goal in 3 and a half years before equalising when Christopher Katongo found himself in acres of space to nod home on the half-hour mark, the 25,800 capacity crowd at the "ausverkauft" (sold out) Schüco Arena stadium saw their side fall behind again when Thomas Hitzlsperger’s trademark hammer forced the ball to swerve, dip then caress the underside of the bar on its way home in the 34th minute to leave the hosts precariously placed at the interval.

Markus Babbel’s impact upon this Stuttgart side has been tremendous and they seemed set to never cease their surge up the rankings since his arrival. But the juggernaut came to a shuddering halt as fortunes took a turn for the worse for both manager and players alike in the second half. The resurgence of Mario Gomez has recently seen no bounds but he twice had to watch efforts roll agonisingly wide before hitting a post late on and when their hero Hitzlsperger brought down Thorben Marx with 20 minutes to play home substitute Vlad Munteanu rammed in the penalty to claim a welcome point for Bielefeld. Stuttgart’s other scorer, the Frenchman Delpierre, also picked up his 5th booking of the season, meaning he will miss the all-important clash with Wolfsburg next week and gives Babbel a dilemma he must deal with if the ’Stuttgart Story’ is to rumble on for another week. As a result of Saturday’s turnaround Stuttgart fall to 4th and Bielefeld stay 16th, although now a mere point from safety.

Fresh Batch of Bundesliga

5 places and 3 points separate the contenders for the Bundesliga “Meisterschaft” (Championship) with 5 rounds remaining as a couple of considerable upsets look to have reshaped the league landscape for the umpteenth time this season.

Energie Cottbus somehow overcame table-toppers Vfl Wolfsburg at the Stadion der Freundschaft on Sunday to cap a marvelous turnaround after the club refunded fans who had travelled to see last week’s 4-goal drubbing at the hands of Schalke 04. The goals came in the last 20 minutes from Dimitar Rangelov and Ervin Skela respectively to give Cottbus the points and their success allied with the 1-1 draw played out simultaneously between Borussia Mönchengladbach and Arminia Bielefeld at Borussia-Park - goals from Karim Matmour and Robert Tesche ensuring a stalemate - leaves the East Germans 15th with 26 points, with Bielefeld having 25 and Gladbach on 24 although both sides below Cottbus boast a better goal difference as the gaps continue to close in a congested bottom 5.

Wolfsburg’s defeat rules out the possibility of Felix Magath eclipsing his own record of 15 consecutive wins at the helm but the Wolves do remain 2 points clear of second-placed Hertha Berlin with 29 games played.

Saturday’s biggest shock came from rock-bottom Karlsruhe SC as they grabbed an away win at the expense of Bayer Leverkusen, who are still without a win at their temporary home in Dusseldorf. The manner in which the win was achieved stirred memories of fairytale finishes of the past, including Frankfurt’s 5-1 win to earn a final day reprieve in 1999 clinched by a last-minute goal from Jan Aage Fjortoft (remember him at Swindon in the first season of the Prem?.

KSC’s fate has been seemingly sealed for some time but after a winner like theirs on Saturday there is always hope of the great escape. Defender Sebastien Langkamp admitted afterwards that his challenge near the half-way line had been aimed at seeing the ball into the “tribune” (stand) if only to halt a potential counter attack coming his way. That the ball gloriously flew upwards and sailed beyond the stranded German international keeper Rene Adler for a goal from 46.5m reminiscent of Jason Cundy in 1993 exceeded his wildest expectations as well as those of his team-mates, who acclaimed him as if he had just won them the Championship. Perhaps the 2nd division Championship, allowing them to fast-forward 12 months and embark upon their adventure all over again.

Karlsruhe remain bottom but won’t feel quite so lonely this morning as they gaze up at the 4 teams within 2 wins of them. Leverkusen are 9th and appear momentarily incapable of rediscovering their scent for goal with star striker Patrick Helmes scoreless since February and substitute Angelos Charisteas wasting a great opportunity to gain parity in “die Nachspielzeit” (injury time) on Saturday.

Scores of ‘warm-hearted sisters’ known as the “Barmherzigeschwestern” of the Holy Vincent from Pall were among the 69,000 who witnessed a colourful contest at the Allianz Arena on Saturday at the request of Munich chief Uli Hoeneß after they had knitted him his very own lucky scarf, but Bayern Munich were beaten 1-0 at home by Schalke 04 – a result which has seriously undermined their Championship bid.

The biggest surprise was that there were not more goals, saves at both ends keeping the match beautifully poised until its very last kick. The final shot-stopping contribution came from Schalke’s young number 1 Manuel Neuer, who reacted to his tipping over the bar of a swerving Hamit Altintop effort by racing to the corner flag and ripping it from the turf, an exact replica of former Bayern keeper Oliver Kahn’s celebration after pipping Schalke to the title in 2001 – an event watched by the 15-year-old Neuer in disbelief from Schalke’s former Park Stadion home, to which he later testified in the post-match interview.

It was the lesser-celebrated of the two Turkish brothers, Schalke’s Halil Altintop, who was to make the telling touch at the other end with a free header from a Christian Pander corner midway through the first half and take his team up to 6th in the table. But it was the four yellow cards and the two subsequent reds accrued by the guests’ Jermaine Jones and the hosts’ Franck Ribery that were to provide the bite to empower an already potentially poisonous atmosphere.

The home side was jeered off at the end, while cries of “Klinsmann raus!” reverberated around the Allianz, the spectators’ voices echoing ever louder as their side’s season spirals further into an abyss of mediocrity. Ribery saw much of the ball but appeared dis-spirited and at times disinterested as he continues to create, unassisted by his colleagues, his sending-off in the 76th minute a sign of the Frenchman’s frustration. Luca Toni failed to register a single shot, whether on target or off, during another fruitless 90 minutes and on one occasion was too busy pleading for a penalty to follow up a Mark van Bommel effort parried into his previous path. While 3rd in a 5-horse race all is not lost for Klinsmann’s side but any additional slip-ups could push the club back into the forbidden forest of UEFA-Cup Football and render the coach’s position untenable.

Two games that both resulted in 2-0 home wins, supported by a combined total of 135,552 fans, were to prove significant in the fluctuating momentum of the sides in the title hunt on Saturday with Vfb Stuttgart easing past 11th placed Eintracht Frankfurt whilst Hamburger HSV were dealt a blow by Borussia Dortmund.

Ludovic Magnin’s centre followed by Cacau’s bullet near post header were enough to give in-form Stuttgart the lead at the Mercedes Benz Arena and when stand-in skipper Mario Gomez was given the freedom of the West to see his scuffed shot over the line for the 19th goal – his 12th since January - of an increasingly triumphant campaign they were home and dry, despite Martin Fenin extending his advantage at the head of the “Aluminiumtreffer” (shots against the woodwork) charts by taking his tally to 6 and Cacau replying with one of his own by way of a fiersome half-volley tipped onto the post by Markus Proll late on. The win takes Markus Babbel’s boys behind Bayern in 3rd by virtue only of the Müncheners’ superior goal difference.

Hamburg had themselves started the day “punktgleich” (on the same number of points as) Munich but, after Neven Subotic had issued an early warning in the form of a long-range piledriver which skimmed the bar, Nuri Sahin’s aerial assist provided captain Sebastien Kehl the space in which to apply a measured first-time finish through Timo Rost’s legs and hand Dortmund the initiative on 32 minutes. Then, having survived one penalty scare, the away side were to eventually concede a spot-kick in the final minute, one which was put away without fuss by Swiss striker Alexander Frei to lift Jurgen Klopp’s energetic outfit into 7th and leave Hamburg, for whom Ivica Olic headed against the crossbar when trailing 1-0, the lowest-ranked of the 5 teams still harbouring title ambitions and their trainer Martin Jol has a severe selection headache ahead of their UEFA-Cup semi-final clash with rivals Werder Bremen on Thursday.

Hertha BSC leapt back into the title mix with a fortunate 1-0 win away to 1899 Hoffenheim on Friday night. The Herthaner’s 13th win by a single-goal cushion this season was earned through the awareness of playmaker Raffael to turn delightfully and burst into space from which Marko Pantelic found Patrick Ebert and the young German forced the ball in at Timo Hildebrand’s near post from the first attack of the game. Substitute Boubacar Sanogo again struck the woodwork in the second half to keep up his chase of Martin Fenin in the Aluminium stakes but the only sour note for the Berliners will be the continuingly indifferent performances of Pantelic. The former fans’ favourite was again hauled off before the end and when asked as to the situation with trainer Lucien Favre he responded with a deeply unconvincing and deadpan “Alles is wunderschön” (Everything’s wonderful). Despite carrying this baggage Hertha have hoisted themselves back into 2nd and can look forward to proving their credentials next week when they face Hamburg. Hoffenheim are 8th and in freefall and cannot wait for the summer break to give their overstretched squad an opportunity to achieve a clean bill of health for the first time since late last year.

When Vfl Bochum took a two-goal lead against Werder Bremen at the Weserstadion on Saturday, some of the home players would have been forgiven for beginning to think ahead to the more prevalent task of tackling their bitter rivals in Europe in midweek, but with Thomas Schaff calling for pride in what is left of this league campaign that was never likely to be contemplated. Bochum striker Stanislav Sestak had scored only 4 times all season before his hat-trick heroics in Hoffenheim two weeks ago and he struck twice in the first half here to put the hosts under the kosh at the interval.

Both goals had come from Werder mistakes and whatever was said in the dressing room at half-time all but eradicated any further errors as a flowing passing move culminated with Hugo Almeida tapping into an empty net after 54 minutes to give the hosts a way back into the contest. Naldo’s surging run, neat interchange and unerring finish then set up a grandstand finish and when Clemens Fritz’s up-and-under was brought down with ease by Diego with 10 minutes to play there was only ever going to be one outcome. The Brazilian turned on a sixpence and blasted the ball high into the Bochum goal to complete the comeback and cement Werder’s place in 10th, denying their guests what would have been a vital victory and dropping them to 15th place, 3 points the right side of the relegation line.

Hannover 96 and FC Köln met at the AWD-Arena on Saturday, with the points destined for “Entstation Enke” the German number one Robert Enke having held off numerous challengers this year to emerge as the leading candidate to solve the goalkeeping conundrum at Bayern Munich next season. He was on top form here to thwart a heavily improved second half display from the visitors, after two former Bremen players; Christian Schulz and Leon Andreasen combined to open the scoring for Hannover. Schulz’s lofted through-ball was guided in by Andreasen with a classy in-step volley and the former Fulham bench-warmer was on target again when Arnold Bruggink’s lifted pass presented him with a one-on-one situation for the second time with 32 minutes gone. Köln fought back and reduced the deficit within moments of the restart when Milivoje Novakovic turned in a drilled Nemanja Vucicevic cross for his 15th of the season. Köln now sit 12th - not yet technically safe but most likely holding enough in the locker to carry them over the finishing line. Hannover are now level with them on 32 points, 7 up from the division’s danger area.