FC Bayern München secured a comfortable win at home as they continue to close in on the Bundesliga title, despite massive injury worries. The record champions comfortably eased by Eintracht Frankfurt, winning 3-0 in the Allianz Arena. Mathematically, they could win the title next weekend in their away game against Hoffenheim but this requires two defeats for their closest rivals VfL Wolfsburg. Regardless of the other teams' results, however, winning the championship is highly likely.
Frankfurt's defence held up for 15 minutes before Robert Lewandowski smashed home a volley into the top corner, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead. Referee Markus Schmidt disallowed a controversial goal by Müller shortly before half time for an offside position.
Despite controlling the game, Bayern continued to struggle with their end product as Mario Götze's attempt from 13 yards only struck the post shortly after the hour mark. Lewandowski put the game to bed only a few minutes later though (66'), much to the relief of the fans. Thomas Müller rounded off the scoring in the 82nd minute with an impressive finish from a very tight angle.
Gladbach dominate BVB in the battle of the Borussias
Borussia Mönchengladbach have recovered quickly from their disappointing Cup exit against third-tier side Arminia Bielefeld during the week as they beat Dortmund 3-1. Gladbach were off to a hot start with Oscar Wendt bagging the opener within the first minute after a well-executed combination of passes. It was the fastest goal ever scored at Borussia-Park.
Jürgen Klopp's men struggled with Gladbach's pressure and were therefore unable to find consistency in their build up game. An example of that occurred in the 32nd minute: Dortmund's defence had pushed up when Patrick Herrmann intercepted a pass and charged towards Roman Weidenfeller, smartly laying the ball off to Raffael, who converted with ease (32').
There was no sign of improvement for Dortmund after the break – on the contrary: Havard Nordveit was on hand to convert from short range following a free kick to give Gladbach a comfortable 3-0 lead after 67 minutes. Granit Xhaka nearly made it four, but his attempt from range barely missed the target. Instead, Dortmund managed to pull one back through Ilkay Gündogan in the 77th minute.
Leverkusen tighten grip on fourth place with victory in Mainz
FC Bayern München secured a comfortable win at home as they continue to close in on the Bundesliga title, despite massive injury worries. The record champions comfortably eased by Eintracht Frankfurt, winning 3-0 in the Allianz Arena. Mathematically, they could win the title next weekend in their away game against Hoffenheim but this requires two defeats for their closest rivals VfL Wolfsburg. Regardless of the other teams' results, however, winning the championship is highly likely.
Frankfurt's defence held up for 15 minutes before Robert Lewandowski smashed home a volley into the top corner, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead. Referee Markus Schmidt disallowed a controversial goal by Müller shortly before half time for an offside position.
Despite controlling the game, Bayern continued to struggle with their end product as Mario Götze's attempt from 13 yards only struck the post shortly after the hour mark. Lewandowski put the game to bed only a few minutes later though (66'), much to the relief of the fans. Thomas Müller rounded off the scoring in the 82nd minute with an impressive finish from a very tight angle.
Gladbach dominate BVB in the battle of the Borussias
Borussia Mönchengladbach have recovered quickly from their disappointing Cup exit against third-tier side Arminia Bielefeld during the week as they beat Dortmund 3-1. Gladbach were off to a hot start with Oscar Wendt bagging the opener within the first minute after a well-executed combination of passes. It was the fastest goal ever scored at Borussia-Park.
Jürgen Klopp's men struggled with Gladbach's pressure and were therefore unable to find consistency in their build up game. An example of that occurred in the 32nd minute: Dortmund's defence had pushed up when Patrick Herrmann intercepted a pass and charged towards Roman Weidenfeller, smartly laying the ball off to Raffael, who converted with ease (32').
There was no sign of improvement for Dortmund after the break – on the contrary: Havard Nordveit was on hand to convert from short range following a free kick to give Gladbach a comfortable 3-0 lead after 67 minutes. Granit Xhaka nearly made it four, but his attempt from range barely missed the target. Instead, Dortmund managed to pull one back through Ilkay Gündogan in the 77th minute.
Leverkusen tighten grip on fourth place with victory in Mainz
Bayer 04 Leverkusen are on course to finish in a Champions League qualifying position, following their 3-2 victory on the road against 1. FSV Mainz 05. They now have a ten-point cushion over FC Schalke 04 in fifth place.
Heung-Min Son's volley from a Hakan Calhanoglu cross opened the scoring after 15 minutes. Just prior to the goal, Lars Bender missed Leverkusen's first big chance of the game. Mainz lacked creativity in their own stadium.
The second half presented a similar picture: Leverkusen kept pushing forward and continued to create pressure. Stefan Kießling doubled the visitors lead after a brilliant assist by Roberto Hilbert (59'). Calhanoglu impressively displayed his set piece qualities in the 73rd minute, converting a direct free kick to make it 3-0 to Leverkusen. Mainz staged a late comeback with Ja-Cheol Koo converting two penalties in the 78th and 89th minute but Leverkusen held on to secure a deserved 3-2 victory.
Freiburg miss out on victory in Schalke
FC Schalke 04 again failed to score as they were held to a 0-0 draw at home against SC Freiburg. The Royal Blues failed to get a single shot on target in a vastly unspectacular and nearly eventless game. Freiburg on the other hand once again proved that they are a difficult team to play against, placing their main emphasis on an organised defence.
Freiburg skipper Julian Schuster was presented with a golden opportunity in the second half, as World Champion Benedikt Höwedes brought down Admir Mehmedi in the box. But Schuster was unable to convert; his penalty flew over the bar. World Champion Julian Draxler was able to make his comeback in the 76th minute, following 162 days of absence through injury.
Paderborn end goal drought against Augsburg
SC Paderborn landed a crucial victory in their bid to avoid relegation this season. The newly promoted side recorded a 2-1 home victory against FC Augsburg and are 16th for the time being. Augsburg on the other hand took a big blow to their Europa League qualifying ambitions, as Hoffenheim could overtake them in the standings tomorrow with a victory.
Augsburg dominated the game from the start but despite their advantage they were unable to produce real danger in front of Paderborn's goal. The hosts eventually found their rhythm in the first half and were unfortunate not to take the lead in the 32nd minute, when Marvin Bakalorz' attempt from range was deflected onto the crossbar.
The drama increased after the break: Elias Kachunga ended Paderborn's goal drought when he bagged the opener shortly after the restart (48'). Prior to this goal, SCP had failed to score in 598 Bundesliga minutes. Pierre-Emile Höjbjerg silenced the home crowd with the equaliser just four minutes later (52') but Paderborn were back in front on the hour mark, as Srdjan Lakic scored made it 2-1 to the hosts.
