Bundesliga match day 23 in pictures
Bayern batter Werder Bremen, Hannover humble Hamburg, Frankfurt and Freiburg fail to find the net, while Augsburg win their relegation dogfight against Hoffenheim. We walk you through the weekend's Bundesliga highlights.
Gladbach hold Dortmund as Reus returns
Borussia Mönchengladbach, the last team to take points off Bayern Munich back in December, managed the same result - a 1-1 draw - when Borussia Dortmund came to town. Dortmund dominated proceedings, with Mario Götze opening the scoring from the penalty spot. But Gladbach countered in the second half and held on for the remainder. It was not the ideal homecoming for former Foal Marco Reus.
Hero Hesl denies Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen had the chance to go second after Dortmund's draw, but their hosts Greuther Fürth had other ideas. Fürth goalie Wolfgang Hesl put on a spectacular display, getting his fingertips to all 11 shots threatening his goal. One triple save late in the first half particularly stood out. The 0-0 draw means Fürth scored unlikely points on interim coach Ludwig Preis' first game at the helm.
Six of the best in 1,000th game
League leaders Bayern Munich tore visitors Werder Bremen to pieces, winning 6-1 in front of jubilant fans. Despite a lot of personnel changes, with an eye on the Champions League perhaps, Bayern gave outgoing coach Jupp Heynckes a real treat to mark a special anniversary. Saturday's game was the 1,000th as a player and coach in Heynckes' illustrious career.
A flop at the top
Fourth faced fifth in Freiburg when Frankfurt came to town - a meeting of this season's biggest surprise packages. Though the scene was set for a cracker, the two sides played out a goalless draw. Max Kruse and Johannes Flum came closest for Freiburg, while Frankfurt's Stefan Aigner had a goal ruled out for offside early on.
Hannover waltz past Hamburg
Hamburg could have gone fifth with a win after Freiburg's draw, but fell well short. Hannover, meanwhile, showed no signs of a continental hangover after Europa League elimination on Thursday. Didier Ya Konan (pictured) scored twice, while key winger Szabolcs Huszti played a crucial role before limping off injured. The win catapults Hannover to seventh place in the league, a point behind Hamburg.
All square in Stuttgart
Stuttgart on Thursday became the only Bundesliga team to make the last 16 of the Europa League, only to drop points less than 48 hours later. Ibrahima Traore put the hosts into the lead early in the second half, but Nuremberg tied the score against surely tired Stuttgart legs in the latter phases of play. Both sides are flying under the radar in the bottom half of the table.
Ten Wolves tie in Mainz snow
Mainz took an early lead through January acquisition Niki Zimling, only for Wolfsburg's defender Naldo to head home an equalizer on 15 minutes. Apart from Alex Madlung's sending off, the snowy match cooled off after this. Mainz couldn't make their numerical advantage pay, though striker Adam Szalai uncharacteristically fluffed his lines twice in front of goal late in the game.
Augsburg win "six-point" Hoffenheim dogfight
Augsburg beat relegation rivals Hoffenheim 2-1 to jump out of the automatic drop zone, with Hoffenheim sliding into 17th position in their place. The club's Korean double act did much of the damage. New signing Dong-Won Ji scored the opener, while Ja-Cheol Koo (grabbing his countryman in the photo) assisted the second for Sascha Mölders. Hoffenheim pulled one back late but couldn't tie the game.
Unusual suspect Matip saves Schalke
Defender Joel Matip improbably scored a pair of goals to put Schalke past Düsseldorf 2-1. Matip's something of a Fortuna specialist, he scored in Düssledorf earlier this season too. The hosts dominated most of the game but still looked shaky amid their dismal winter run of form. It was only Schalke's second win in their last 12 Bundesliga games.