FC Bayern München continued their march towards a historic fourth consecutive title, winning 2-0 at Hertha BSC. As Borussia Dortmund recorded a 3-0 victory in their game at VfB Stuttgart, Bayern will have to wait until next weekend’s game against Borussia Mönchengladbach to can clinch the championship.
Hannover 96 still have a small chance of avoiding relegation following another impressive display of character, drawing 2-2 at FC Ingolstadt. With 22 points to their name, Hannover can still catch-up with Werder Bremen (31 points) who occupy the relegation play-off spot. 1. FC Köln cruised to a 4-1 victory over Darmstadt 98, while FC Augsburg increased VfL Wolfsburg’s problems, recording a 2-0 victory over last year’s DFB Cup winners.
Löw watches Bayern earn victory in Berlin
Around 74,000 spectators, including Germany coach Joachim Löw, were in attendance at Berlin’s Olympiastadion to witness FC Bayern struggle to a win. Hertha defended well in the first half and continually looked to counter-attacks to relieve the pressure on their back-line. Bayern struggled to create any clear chances until Arturo Vidal struck a firm shot from the edge of the area three minutes into the second half, which fizzed into the back of the net after taking a slight deflection. Douglas Costa eventually secured the victory for the Bavarian club after his fine shot from range found the top corner in the 80th minute.
Dortmund controlled the game throughout in Stuttgart to three points without much resistance. Shinji Kagawa and United States international Christian Pulisic fired the visitors into a deserved two-goal lead before half-time. Henrikh Mkhitaryan added a third goal to Dortmund’s lead ten minutes after the restart.
Sakai and Kiyotake salvage point for Hannover
Hannover conceded the opener in Ingolstadt after just ten minutes through Alfredo Morales’ header. The hosts were then reduced to ten men after 20 minutes with Romain Brégerie getting sent off. However, Ingolstadt remained the more active side and Moritz Hartmann doubled their advantage just five minutes after Brégerie had been given his marching orders. Hannover were not able to take advantage of playing against ten men until Hiroki Sakai pulled one back shortly before the hour-mark. Hannover pushed for the equaliser and eventually levelled the score through Hiroshi Kiyotake.
Köln cruised to a 4-1 victory thanks to Anthony Modeste and Marcel Risse, who both bagged a brace against Darmstadt. Modeste scored both his goals before the break, with Jerome Gondorf temporarily drawing the game level. Risse was on target twice in the second half, leaving Köln in ninth place with 40 points to their name. Darmstadt are 13th but still threatened by relegation, with just four points more than Werder Bremen.
Augsburg put in an efficient performance in Wolfsburg, with Alfred Finnbogason firing home for his sixth goal of the season inside the opening minute. Germany international Max Kruse was dispossessed by Halil Altintop, who quickly passed into the path of Finnbogason. The striker kept his nerve against Wolfsburg keeper Diego Benaglio and delivered an early shock to Wolfsburg, from which they were unable to recover throughout this match.
Augsburg remained the more active side and Altintop’s goal in the second half doubled their advantage, leaving Wolfsburg little chance of qualifying for European football next season.