Bundesliga roundup: Dortmund earn crucial three points while RB Leipzig holds European spot

Koln - Wolfsburg 0-2

Wolfsburg arrived in Carnival country on their worst run of form in over a year, but they got the party started early as they tried to bring that to an end, racing into the lead inside four minutes. Yannick Gerhardt, a Cologne youth academy graduate, came back to haunt his former side when his relatively tame shot somehow slipped through the legs of goalkeeper Marvin Schwäbe. The 28-year-old was the matchwinner in this fixture last season, and his goal was a good sign for the Wolves, who were unbeaten in all of his previous 15 scoring appearances in the Bundesliga.

Steffen Baumgart’s Billy Goats desperately struggled to create chances in an uninspired first-half display, and there’d be little improvement after the break, despite having a greater control of possession. Wolfsburg appeared comfortable against the ball and would soon double their lead, after Cologne skipper Jonas Hector fouled Kilian Fischer inside the area. Maximilian Arnold stepped up and emphatically converted from 12 yards, which spelt the end of the hosts’ chances of victory.

The lack of quality on show from Cologne was particularly surprising, especially given that they’d lost just one of their eight league games on home soil. This sub-par display rained on their carnival parade while also leaving them stranded in mid-table, with dreams of a return to Europe fading fast. The Wolves retain that ambition, having closed the gap to the top-six to five points with a professional display on the road.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Yannick Gerhardt (Wolfsburg)

Hertha Berlin - Augsburg 2-0

Hertha midfielder Marco Richter said prior to the game that “If we win then everything looks completely different” and the roars across the stadium showed that the home faithful appeared to share that sentiment. Willing the ball into the net early on, the Hertha fans almost witnessed ex-Augsburg forward Florian Niederlechner give their side an early lead, though he fluffed his lines from 12 yards out.

Perhaps aware of their torrid record at the Olympiastadion - having never won a Bundesliga game here against Hertha - Augsburg’s anxious defence became increasingly stretched throughout the second half as they looked to avoid more capital punishment. The Old Lady couldn’t find the killer final ball however and the game was fizzling out as the half-time whistle sounded, with the hosts surprisingly failing to have a shot on goal.

Snow poured in Berlin, but the goals certainly didn’t as the second half started in the same manner as the first had ended, and it appeared both sides preferred to avoid defeat in this game rather than hunt to win it, which is perhaps understandable considering their respective league positions. Seemingly out of nowhere though, Richter came through on his word against the team he made his breakthrough with, thundering a long range strike into the bottom corner to ignite a match that was clearly affected by the heavy snow.

Visibility was poor but that was hardly an excuse for an unorganised visiting defence, as a chipped free-kick made it all the way through to Dodi Lukebakio, whose neat finish doubled his side’s lead. The second blow seemed too much to handle for an uninspired Augsburg, who made no notable chances with a comeback never looking likely. That left jubilant home fans to cheer their side over the line in comfort, with a victory that might prove vital if Hertha are to maintain their top-flight status.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Marco Richter (Hertha Berlin)

Hoffenheim - Dortmund 0-1

Dortmund entered the contest in second place, level on points with title-rivals Bayern Munich and Union Berlin, who will face one another on Sunday. With the Bundesliga summit in their sights, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens tested Oliver Baumann in the fourth minute after driving into the box from the left flank. Hoffenheim, meanwhile, were aiming to claim their first league win since October, and they went desperately close to taking the lead in the 15th minute. Christoph Baumgartner was unable to bundle the ball home from close-range before the ball lobbed up to Ozan Kabak, who could only head over.

Just after the half-hour mark, Sebastien Haller exquisitely created his own space to force Baumann into a fine stop, and from the resulting corner, the Ivorian was once again denied by the quick reactions of the Hoffenheim goalkeeper. Just when it seemed as though the hosts would make it to the break unscathed, a dangerous Marco Reus free-kick flicked off the back of Julian Brandt and into the net to give Dortmund a narrow half-time lead.

The opening 15 minutes of the second period proved to be a busy period for those in the VAR room. After being called over to the monitor, referee Martin Petersen decided against awarding a penalty for Emre Can’s challenge on Kevin Akpoguma. Moments later, Marius Wolf was celebrating a thunderous strike, but following another VAR review, his effort was swiftly chalked off for a foul in the build-up.

While Baumann had to pull off a fine stop from Raphael Guerreiro’s deflected strike, his opposite number, Gregor Kobel, was doing his utmost to protect Dortmund’s lead, thwarting Baumgartner and OGC Nice loanee Kasper Dolberg. Jude Bellingham thumped the post in stoppage time, but Brandt’s first-half effort proved enough for Dortmund to move three points clear at the top, while the hosts drop into the relegation play-off spot following a 12-game winless league run.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund)

RB Leipzig - Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1

Fortunes were contrasting for these two sides in their respective UEFA Champions League (UCL) round of 16 clashes, and Leipzig were riding the wave of their tremendous second-half performance against Manchester City as they opened the scoring after just six minutes. Following a barrage of early attacks, Emil Forsberg showed more desire than Tuta to snatch the ball and thread through Timo Werner, who managed to shuffle it past the onrushing Kevin Trapp, despite almost losing his footing at the crucial moment.

Although firmly involved in the Bundesliga title race, Wednesday’s UCL defeat to Napoli may have adversely affected Frankfurt’s confidence, and they continued to be overrun in the first-half. Shortly after firing his team ahead, Werner found himself bearing down on goal in almost identical circumstances, but this time Trapp held his nerve. The onslaught continued, and Leipzig were able to add a second before the half-time whistle. A pass from Dominik Szoboszlai allowed Werner space out wide, and the former Chelsea striker applied a killer ball across the face of goal to Forsberg, who had the simplest of tasks to finish.

Some early second-half changes by Oliver Glasner proved to be the catalyst that the visitors needed to burst into life. Randal Kolo Muani, having had the fewest touches of any player in the first period, showed his immense technical ability as he worked space for a shot from distance, but it was prevented from finding the top corner by Janis Blaswich. Frankfurt got their goal back soon after, as the newly introduced Aurélio Buta teed up Djibril Sow to ferociously volley into the corner, slicing the Leipzig lead in half. Daichi Kamada and Jesper Lindstrøm had found their footing in the match, and Blaswich needed to be in imperious form to prevent an equaliser.

For all of Frankfurt’s pressure, it was the home side who looked the likelier to score in the closing stages, with missed chances for Konrad Laimer and Andre Silva. In the end, Marco Rose’s side were able to see out the win, extending their scoring run to 14 consecutive home matches in the process.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Emil Forsberg (RB Leipzig)

Werder Bremen - Bochum 3-0

The opening half-hour was largely forgettable, but as the game approached that milestone, there was a stark tale of two chances, with Kevin Stoger firstly going on a solo run and smashing in a shot, which Jiri Pavlenka did well to save low to his left. Niclas Fullkrug showed Bochum how it’s done. In a great show of improvisation, Jung made a well-timed headed flick to the Bremen #11, who fired in to give Bremen the lead with his 14th league goal of the campaign.

Now visibly enjoying their first home head-to-head with Bochum for over a decade, the Green-Whites were not content to sit back from there, and doubled their lead shortly before half-time after a turnover in possession from a Bochum free kick. The initial counter from Bremen’s penalty box was broken down, but an errant ball fell to Jung, who found Niklas Schmidt unmarked and onside in the area with a through-ball, allowing him to fire low into the Bochum net and surely seal the points with a whole half still to play.

Half-time brought just the one change in midfield for Bochum, with Philipp Forster deployed in place of Vasilios Lampropoulos to give the visitors more of a presence up front – but if this was an attempt to rescue a lost situation, it backfired spectacularly moments before the hour mark. Marvin Ducksch stood menacingly over a free kick, and he went straight for goal, firing a beautiful effort low from the edge of the box inside the left post, duly scoring a seventh goal in eight personal clashes against the Blues.

The rest of the game was but a carnival for Bremen, and some of the more ardent Weserstadion faithful may still harbour dreams of an improbable surge into the top-six. As for Bochum, many of their long-suffering fans will now see anything other than automatic relegation as a good outcome, after a pathetic showing that puts the so-called Undescendables’ tally of goals conceded at 35 – more than any other side in the division.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Anthony Jung (Werder Bremen)