Bundesliga Matchday 12: In pictures
In another matchday full of thrills and spills, Union Berlin beat leaders Gladbach while Bayern Munich recorded an emphatic win. On Friday, Dortmund fought back in dramatic style but it looks grim for Hertha Berlin.
Augsburg 4 -0 Hertha Berlin
Augsburg took full advantage of a shambolic Hertha Berlin display to leapfrog their opponents. Philipp Max's freekick from the right touchline bounced in early on before Rune Jarstein's heavy touch and subsequent tackle allowed Sergio Cordova to score and ended the keeper's game. Substitute Andre Hahn added a third after the break before Florian Niederlechner wrapped things up.
Hoffenheim 1 - 5 Mainz
Recently sacked by Cologne, Achim Beierlorzer got his Mainz career going with a stunning 10-man win against a team who had been in red hot form. Levin Öztunali kicked things off with an angled drive before Bote Baku was sent off just before the break. An own goal form Pavel Kaderabek, two strikes from Pierre Kunde and a Jean-Paul Boetius goal did the rest despite an Andre Kramaric consolation.
Union Berlin 2-0 Borussia Mönchengladbach
Union Berlin took another scalp at the Alte Försterei, this time beating league leaders Mönchengladbach. The early opener came when Anthony Ujah finished a swift Union counter-attack, and the second arrived two minutes into injury time, when Sebastian Andersson headed in a fortuitous second to seal Union’s third straight league win to send them 11th. Gladbach's lead is cut to one point.
RB Leipzig 4-1 Cologne
Emil Forsberg scored twice as RB Leipzig delivered another thumping win at home. Timo Werner's delightful touch got Leipzig moving and Forsberg's penalty made it two. Konrad Laimer's lovely finish notched up a third but Cologne showed signs of life, pulling one back through Rafael Czichos. But Forsberg's sizzling free-kick completing the thrashing, whioch sent Julian Nagelsmann's side second.
Fortuna Düsseldorf 0–4 Bayern Munich
Bayern took full advantage of their rivals' slip-ups with a crushing victory in Düsseldorf — but Robert Lewandowski didn't score for the first time in the league this season. Benjamin Pavard got the slightest touch to set Bayern on the path to victory, Corentin Tolisso added a second, and Serge Gnabry made it three from close range. Philippe Coutinho joined the party to complete the rout.
Werder Bremen 1–2 Schalke
Schalke picked up an impressive win on the road to keep the pressure on the teams at the top. The Royal Blues took the lead just before half time when Amine Harit found the bottom corner and Schalke went two up when Sebastian Langkamp’s slip let in Benito Raman, who kept his cool to slot the ball through Jiri Pavlenka’s legs. Bremen got one back through Yuya Osako, but it was too little too late.
Bayer Leverkusen 1–1 Freiburg
Bayer Leverkusen and Freiburg had to settle for a draw in a close contest at BayArena. Freiburg took the lead through Lucas Höler’s stooping header in the 5th minute, after Leverkusen’s statuesque defending allowed Höler to reach Christian Günter’s cross. Leverkusen levelled through a stinging low drive from Moussa Diaby, who found the bottom corner with laser-like precision.
Eintracht Frankfurt 0–2 Wolfsburg
Ten-man Wolfsburg pulled off an impressive win in Frankfurt. Wout Weghorst was in the right place at the right time again to pounce for the Wolves, but things threatened to go pear-shaped for Wolfsburg in first half stoppage time when Marcel Tisserand was shown a second yellow card for a flailing elbow. But the ten men doubled their advantage though Joao Felix, after a mistake by Felix Wiedwald.
Borussia Dortmund 3-3 Paderborn
Borussia Dortmund fought back from 3-0 down to salvage a point in an extraordinary game at Westfalenstadion on Friday. Paderborn, the Bundesliga’s bottom team, raced into a 3-0 lead courtesy of a Streli Mamba double, and a third from Gerrit Holtmann. Dortmund were reborn after the break and mounted a comeback with goals coming from Jadon Sancho, Axel Witsel and, in the 93rd minute, Marco Reus.